I’M STILL THE FOR THE JOB
ERIK TEN HAG insists he has NOT lost the dressing room at Manchester United.
And the under-pressure Red Devils boss also believes he has got the backing of the Old Trafford fans as co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe agonises over whether to stick or twist with the Dutchman.
United have endured a dismal Premier League season which reached its nadir when they were thrashed 4-0 at Crystal Palace on Monday night when their supporters showed more commitment than Ten Hag’s players.
But the United boss has guided his team to the FA Cup Final – and he feels that suggestions his squad have already given up on him are wide of the mark.
Ten Hag said: “If I look at the problems we have faced and all the injuries we have had, in almost every game the players have still fought.
“There has been great team spirit.
“But not on Monday night – and that is why I was disappointed.
“I was really disappointed and the players were disappointed with themselves. There was a collective failure.
“But in all the other games, w e have fought for each other, showed good team spirit – and I don’t have any doubt about this.
“The players fight and there is a good team spirit. I think the fans have seen this.
“They saw against Brentford how we fought. We did not play well but we fought and stayed in the game.
“At Chelsea, it was a great game, we played very good and we fought.
“Against Liverpool, we had to adapt the backline because Raphael Varane (top) and Jonny Evans (above) dropped out, but we fought and got a very good result.
“They have always fought – against Coventry, until 70 minutes, then Sheffield United.
“They are resilient. Against Burnley, our third game in six days, if you see what we put out there it was a lot.
“How deep the players went in their physical outputs in these games was incredible.”
United bring their desperate Premier League season to a close with games against Arsenal, Newcastle and Brighton in the next seven days.
Then it’s on to Wembley and the chance to avenge last season’s FA Cup Final defeat at the hands of rivals Manchester City.
Ratcliffe’s mind may already be made up.
But Ten Hag feels he may be paying the price for a successful first season at Old Trafford, when he lifted the Carabao by
Cup and guided the Reds back into the Champions League with a third-placed finish in the Premier League.
The Dutchman insists he has no regrets about coming out of his comfort zone at Ajax to move to Manchester in the summer of 2022. Ten Hag said: “I am really happy to be here – and have never for a single second regretted coming. I wanted to take on this challenge.
“I haven’t changed at all. I am still the same.
“Of course, there have been different experiences and I really like the ones I have had. I love the English football culture.
“I appreciate it all and am really happy to be here.
“But I have not changed at all.
“I did my job and in the first year I would say it was a good formation. We played to our levels, maybe we over-performed.
“In this one we haven’t and I know why, but we are still in an FA Cup Final and that’s a great achievement.
“This is a massive club and you only realise that when you first come in, the things you have to face.”