Yorke: I wouldn’t want to play in Ten Hag’s team

DWIGHT YORKE has given a damning verdict on the state of Manchester United, claiming he would not want to play in Erik ten Hag’s team. Monday’s 4-0 loss at Crystal Palace leaves United on 54 points after 35 games, raising the prospect that Ten Hag will oversee the club’s worst ever Premier League campaign. For Yorke, who joined United at the start of the Treble-winning 1998-99 season from Aston Villa, the allure of United is fading for today’s big names. ‘People are second-guessing about whether they want to join United,’ Yorke said.

‘It never used to be a club you contemplated coming to. United are in for you? You don’t think about it. Now players are thinking, “I am not so sure”.’ Asked if he would like to occupy the striker role belonging to Rasmus Hojlund right now, the 52-year-old was emphatic. ‘I wouldn’t want to play,’ he said. ‘Whether you want to face that sort of aggro coming in, it’s just knowing that there’s a lack of creativity, lack of passion, the negative talk about the team.’ Yorke sat alongside former team-mate Andy Cole as he reflected on United’s malaise, on a night all about celebrating the Treble heroes of ’99 ahead of a new documentary airing next week. The pair’s blossoming relationship en route to winning the Premier League, FA Cup and European Cup was obvious in the three-part film. So too were the team’s high standards. Cole has been left upset at United’s decline. ‘It’s hard because I never saw United being in this position,’ he said. ‘The team I was involved in, we left a legacy

for players who want to come to the club and try to emulate us. I look at the team now, and you scratch your head because you have to understand what United is all about. It’s about winning, it’s about competing. ‘We’re so far away. We keep saying, “Oh, another couple of years”, but it’s been longer than a couple of years. When are United going to be involved in the title race? Who knows?’

The pair were in agreement before hitting the red carpet that Ten Hag’s United, who are eighth in the table and 13 points outside the top four, are a world away from the Treble winners. ‘It’s so far apart,’ Yorke said. ‘What is more painful about it is that we can’t even qualify for the Champions League. For me, that’s the minimum.’

99 is available exclusively on Prime Video on May 17