Erik Ten Hag Wants Big Changes From His Inherited Squad

Erik ten Hag has made clear to his new Manchester United squad that those wishing to stay at the club have a clean slate, despite also being adamant that he wants a host of new signings.

ESPN Reporter Rob Dawson has stated that Erik ten Hag spoke to the current Manchester United players through a series of zoom calls and face to face meetings throughout the past six weeks.

These meetings will have helped the Dutchman to gain an indication of which players were ready to stay and be a part of his project moving forward.

Ten Hag was also reportedly insistent that a ‘miserable last season’ does not make the players themselves poor players.

Boosting the morale of the squad throughout pre-season will be vital for Ten Hag, with a potential bounce under the new manager surely benefiting the team as the 22/23 season starts.

It will be reassuring for fans to hear that Ten Hag is confident in the ability of those who played important roles last season, with little change currently to the spine of the team.

There has been transfer activity coming out of Old Trafford but to no avail so far, with a single new signing yet to be confirmed.

However, reports currently suggest that deals for Frenkie de Jong and Tyrell Malacia are all but complete.

It is hoped that there will still be several new signings to follow both of these Dutch players, with United still in the market for a centre back, defensive midfielder and potentially a striker and right back, depending on any further outgoings from the club.

Despite the avid speculation of new players arriving at Old Trafford in virtually every position, the message from football director John Murtough and CEO Richard Arnold has been that Erik ten Hag must continue to develop the players already at the club and ensure that they produce a higher level of performance than was on display last season.

These players will include the likes of Luke Shaw, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and others that performed well below the expectations of club and fans alike.

The change in system and play style that will be implemented under Ten Hag will allow a number of players at the club to play in a way that is more suited to their skillset, with players like Rashford able to fully exploit attributes such as his pace and explosiveness in a fast flowing an direct Ten Hag system.

A number of high profile players have already left the club, with Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata amongst those the most notable of those.

The exits of these players should free up a significant proportion of the wage bill at Old Trafford, allowing for new arrivals that will buy into ten Hag’s project at the club.

There is the possibility of further exits, with Aaron Wan Bissaka and Alex Telles both rumoured to be on the move from Manchester United this summer.

The club and fans alike will be hoping that high profile arrivals and exits will be finalised to an extent in the coming weeks, as Erik ten Hag looks to lead a solid pre-season ahead of the 22/23 season.

The club will fly to Bangkok to face Liverpool on 12 July in the first of six pre-season friendlies, before heading over to Australia to play Melbourne Victory, Crystal Palace and Aston Villa.

The side will then head back to Northern Europe to face Atletico Madrid in Oslo on 30 July, before a fixture at Old Trafford the next day against Rayo Vallecano sees the club wrap their pre-season tour up before kicking their Premier League season off against Brighton & Hove Albion on the 2022/23 opening weekend.