Ten Hag comes full circle as United eye a perfect 10

IT IS eight months since Erik ten Hag turned up at Selhurst Park to watch Manchester United for the first time after being appointed the club’s new manager. Ten Hag sat alongside football director John Murtough for the 1-0 defeat by Crystal Palace that day in May as United ended their worst Premier League campaign in what was also interim boss Ralf Rangnick’s final game in charge. United were on their knees. Rangnick said the squad needed the football equivalent of major heart surgery, and Ten Hag could have been forgiven for wondering what he had let himself in for. The Dutchman returns to south London this evening having masterminded a complete transformation at Old Trafford, in terms of results on the pitch and the mood off it. Ten Hag’s side will go above Manchester City and Newcastle into second place behind leaders Arsenal if they can record a 10th successive victory in all competitions for the first time since Sir Alex Ferguson won 11 in a row in 2009. Saturday’s dramatic comeback in the Manchester derby was another sign that United have developed the character and self-belief so typical of Ferguson’s greatest teams. ‘I’m convinced of that,’ said Ten Hag. ‘Teams need experience to build that mentality, to build that belief, that a game is only over when the referee whistles for the last time. To stay in the game, you have to construct that and you need experiences like the derby to improve even more and push it even more to a higher level of mentality.’

Ten Hag allowed his players to celebrate beating City but has been quick to bring them back down to earth for the trip to Palace. ‘I think every win you have to

celebrate,’ said the United boss. ‘If you can’t celebrate, you kill the energy. But we had to settle down after 24 hours and move on to the next game.

‘At Selhurst Park, with the atmosphere there it’s a difficult place to go. Palace will battle us from the first moment on.’ United will return to London on Sunday to face Arsenal, and Ten Hag must decide whether to risk Brazil duo Casemiro and Fred tonight because both midfielders are one booking away from a ban. United are also assessing Anthony Martial’s fitness, which will affect Wout Weghorst’s chances of making his debut after cutting short his loan at Besiktas to move to Old Trafford for the rest of the season. Alejandro Garnacho came off the bench in the derby to set up the winner for Marcus Rashford, and Ten Hag praised the 18-year-old for the way he has matured this season as United try to persuade him to sign a new contract amid interest from some of Europe’s top clubs. ‘He has a skill I don’t see many players in the Premier League having: he beats players one-on-one,’ said the United boss. ‘But he’s learned in the last months how to play in a team, how to live, how to do the right things in the week, how to have the right attitude on the training ground. ‘For him, keep going in the process. It’s not done, there is a lot to come.’