Reports in various British media that Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag’s influence on the player group was waning were not without consequences for the journalists concerned.
Reporters from Sky Sports News, Manchester Evening News, The Mirror and England’s ESPN were banned from attending Tuesday’s press conference ahead of Wednesday night’s league match against Chelsea.
negative reporting
Journalists wrote that some players were less happy with Ten Hag. Manchester United said in a statement that it was not so outraged by the negative news, but rather that failure to contact the club in advance “may have given us the opportunity to comment or provide context”.
“You should come to us first,” Ten Hag said at the press conference, “and not publish such articles behind our back. This is not true.”
‘No problem’
The coach, who has not used the exiled Jadon Sancho since September, can guess that there are unhappy players in the group. “Of course, in every team there are players who play little and are not very happy. This is nothing but normal. They have to wait for their chance. But no, there is no problem.”
“I always listen to my players and always give them the opportunity to talk. And if they have a different opinion, of course I will listen to them. But that didn’t happen, maybe once or twice. But the majority want to play the way we are playing now. Proactive, dynamic and courageous. This is what they want.”
Although Manchester United were ahead 2-0 and 3-1 away against Galatasaray last week, they could not draw 3-3, while they lost 1-0 to Newcastle United last Saturday. The Premier League’s current number seven will visit number ten Chelsea on Wednesday.
Source: NOS
I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.
