Ten Hag cancels day off and says he could

ERIK ten Hag cancelled a day off for United players and lambasted them for showing a lack of hunger in their 4-0 trouncing by Brentford.

And the Reds boss even said he would have changed the whole starting XI at half-time if he could.

United stooped to a new low in their recent history by heading into halftime 4-0 down at the Community

Stadium. Ten Hag has become the first United manager to lose his first two games since John Chapman in 1921 and his management has already come under intense scrutiny.

The decision to play Christian Eriksen as a holding midfielder backfired, particularly when the Dane was robbed of the ball inside his own area by Mathias Jensen, who scored to make it 2-0. However, Ten Hag denied United’s defeat owed to his tactics.

“Brentford was more hungry, one, and two we concede goals in individual mistakes,” said Ten Hag, who hauled his squad into Carrington yesterday in what was scheduled to be a day off. “You can have a good plan but we had to put the plan into the bin.

“I think it had nothing to do with tactics and the first two goals it’s about dealing with the ball.

“I think they follow my instructions but they make bad decisions and that’s football, it’s a game of mistakes and you get punished.”

When it was mentioned Eriksen has seldom played as a holding midfielder, Ten Hag replied: “Yes, but he didn’t have to receive the ball there, because we give options and the players have to choose but we said play long, invite them and play long.

“I don’t want to play from the back when it’s not possible. It was naive how we played, you have to play more

direct. We attracted them, the space was high up the pitch, you have to do that option but that is what we didn’t do.

“We will learn, we will have to learn, it’s not good enough, it’s not the level and the standard we want.

“We have to question (why Brighton and Brentford were hungrier). It’s not possible the opponent is more hungry than you are. I saw in the second half a comeback but you have to start well and it’s not good.

“We are in a really difficult situation, we have to find solutions.

“We need more hunger on the pitch and show that as an individual and as a team.”

Ten Hag hooked £55.7m signing Lisandro Martinez at the interval, as well as left-back Luke Shaw and midfielder Fred.

“I subbed three. But I could’ve changed them all,” Ten Hag stressed.