Erik ten Hag reveals ‘confrontational’ talks over Manchester United’s direction

Erik ten Hag had “confrontational conversations” with Manchester United’s executive last month over the direction of the team, with the Dutchman stating “we should part ways” if an agreement could not be reached.

Ten Hag met club officials in Ibiza for talks to decide his future as manager after the Sir Jim Ratcliffe-led football department had considered numerous other candidates as potential replacements. The 54-year-old was ultimately retained and signed an extension to his existing contract until June 2026.

“The argument they gave was briefly: we’ve looked at everything and put it all together, but we think we already have the best manager ­in-house,” said Ten Hag in an interview with the Dutch newspaper ­Algemeen Dagblad (AD). “Then I did say: then we need to discuss some things, about how we interact and collaborate. We had a good, ­honest, but also confrontational conversation about that. As it should be at the top.

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“I gave my vision of the season, on the situation at United. And I indicated which path we should take in my opinion. You have to be very honest with each other about that. And then it’s about: do you come together or not? I also told them: ‘If you think this is not the way, then we should just part ways.’”

Ten Hag’s job was under threat after a difficult campaign that ended with United finishing eighth, their lowest in the Premier League era, having also crashed out of the Champions League after the group stage.

The manager had to contend with more than 60 injuries and ­differing off-field problems ­concerning Mason Greenwood, Jadon Sancho and Antony, yet he ended the campaign on a high by leading United to FA Cup glory against Manchester City.

Ten Hag said it was “by far the toughest season I’ve experienced as a coach. You get tired, especially at the end. You have to make sure you stay sharp. Let’s be honest: you lose too many games, it just takes effort to keep the team focused, motivated every time. The players are disappointed, the people around you are disappointed. This is a very big club, with a lot of people working here. Those people get disappointed too, a negative atmosphere develops. As a manager, you have to keep ­providing energy. That takes strength, of course.”

Ten Hag defended his methods to AD after having drawn scrutiny in regards to United’s extensive injury list. “It had nothing to do with the ­intensity of my training because here you train and play every three days,” the Dutchman insisted. “When you see the schedule we had – with 61 matches, not counting all the games my players played for their national teams – it’s just bizarre. It’s really too much.

“We weren’t the only team struggling with injuries, other clubs had the same issue. Last season, we had it constantly in the same positions, all in defence. At one point, we hardly had any defenders left.”

Ten Hag goes into the new ­season boosted by the signings of the 23-year-old Netherlands striker Joshua Zirkzee and the highly rated 18-year-old French defender Leny Yoro.