Erik ten Hag has a ‘real problem’ as new Man United leaks emerge – pundit
Noel Whelan has insisted Erik ten Hag must explore the “attitude” of his Man United squad after concerning leaks from the training ground.
The former Leeds striker, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, insisted the Red Devils squad “look like they’re down in the dumps” after just two games under the Dutchman.
Man United slumped to a 4-0 away defeat at Brentford on Saturday (13 August) – their seventh consecutive away loss in the Premier League.
According to Sky Sports journalist Kaveh Solhekol (14 August), Ten Hag cancelled his players’ day off on Sunday.
He reportedly wanted to make his squad run “8.5 miles” during the extra training session – the difference in distance covered between Brentford and Man United during Saturday’s clash.
Whelan insisted there are “real questions about the hunger and desire” of the United stars.
He told Football Insider‘s Ewan Kingsbury: “In any game, you’ve got to work hard.
“You get out what you put in – and that was true for the game on Saturday. They got nothing.
“Look at the stats, the energy, the closing down, the ball retention. They couldn’t do any of it.
“This isn’t the Man United of old – they’re weak. They’re easy to play against, and we shouldn’t be surprised anymore.
“It’s a mental thing as well. They look like they’re down in the dumps already after two games. There are real questions about the hunger and desire of these players.
“If you’re having to question whether a player wants to work hard or run hard for the team – then you’ve got a real problem.
“I’m not sure where Erik ten Hag goes from here. It can’t be a manager problem, so it has to be a problem with the players.
“Now you’ve got to look a bit deeper into the attitude of the players.
“Do they want to run that extra yard? Do they feel that they can just turn up and win football matches through their quality without working hard?”
In other news, pundit cites Bruno Fernandes as “eight” Man United stars mooted to quit.