Aheed Abrar
Gary Neville impressed by Erik ten Hag fronting media after bad start at Manchester United
Manchester United icon Gary Neville was impressed by Erik ten Hag facing the media after the club got off to a bad start this season. The Dutch manager’s esteem grew in the mind of the former defender.
The Red Devils lost to Brighton & Hove Albion and Brentford in the first two games of Ten Hag’s reign in the Old Trafford dugout. The gaffer had to also deal with issues around Cristiano Ronaldo and Harry Maguire.
The Portugal international has not started a lot of games for United in the current campaign. He has fallen behind the likes of Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial in the pecking order.
On the other hand, our captain started in the matches against the Seagulls and at the Gtech Community Stadium. However, after the disappointing defeats, the former Ajax head coach dropped the 29-year-old to the bench.
Since then, Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez have been the first choice pairing at the back for Ten Hag. And the duo have done well to stabilise a defence which was shaky in the previous campaign.
Speaking on Sky Sports (h/t Express), Neville, who captained the Red Devils during his playing career, was pleased to see the Dutch manager come in front of the camera and face the questions.
“I think where he went up massively in my estimations was the week between Brentford and Liverpool.”
“He fronted up all of the press, he stood there and answered all the difficult questions, he came out in the difficult moments when people were obviously asking constantly about Ronaldo and Maguire, and he’s fronted it with real steel.”
Ten Hag has changed the tide since the initial disappointment this season. We got victories against Liverpool and Arsenal in a four-game winning run in the Premier League. However, the game against Manchester City also indicated that a lot needs to change at the club.
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The identity under the Dutch manager is apparent at United. He has brought a new style of play to the Red Devils. However, the gaffer will evidently need time and appropriate personnel to try and get the club back to the top.
