Erik ten Hag has a lot of work to do at Manchester United

Man U are a long way from where Erik ten Hag will want them

The soon-to-be former boss of mighty Ajax of Amsterdam has high expectations. His Eredivisie winning squad is proof of that. During his tenure, he has taken the Dutch giant deep into the Champions League and the Europa League. Ten Hag has presented teams to the world that cost half of what the Red Devils do, and they’ve played better than United as well.

Erik ten Hag has a lot on his plate as he will soon be on his way to Manchester from Amsterdam. United players and fans better be ready for his intensity.

If Ten Hag can fix the culture of this team — if he is given enough time — then he will be the first great success as manager since the rise of Sir Alex Ferguson so many years ago. Indeed, since Sir Alex departed, coaches have come and gone. Big names have come in with promises of glory and have produced to varying degrees. Smaller names have come in and have been pushed aside quickly, too.

David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick have all piloted this vessel, and while they didn’t have the same success as Sir Alex Ferguson, even those who did win were eventually relieved of their duties.

The current iteration of the club, however, is more desperately broken than any of the previous versions under those managers. It has many old and famous names who are not good fits for this side moving forward.

There are players that seemingly do not care about the badge on the shirt or the history of the club. They have broken tactics and little consistency or fluidity. They need a boss like Erik ten Hag  but the question remains if they are ready for him.

Ten Hag will wish to remake this club root, branch and stalk. He will sell the players he does not fancy and will combine those funds with those already available to remake his side into something spirited and truly competitive once more.

Ten Hag at United: What will that look like?

If older players are to be kept, they will certainly have to take a cut in playing time under the new boss. Donny van de Beek will finally get a chance to play more regularly, as the former Ajax manager loves what the Dutchman can provide. Frenkie de Jong will be coveted from Barcelona, but his acquisition will be difficult as Xavi Hernandez will want to keep him.

Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic and others will be out, while big names like Edinson Cavani and Cristiano Ronaldo could swiftly follow. In their current position, Manchester United will either finish in the Europa Conference League or Europa League. The lower tier might actually be more to Ten Hag’s liking, although he’d never say as much. United under Ten Hag next season, with a Ten Hag lineup and tactics, alongside new players, the Red Devils could win that trophy and use it to qualify for Europe or do it via an improved season in the Premier League.

As strange as it sounds, United need a bit of a confidence boost at this point, and playing in the UECL, while potentially humiliating for such a proud side, could really do them a lot of good should the whole thing be managed properly. Fortunately, Erik ten Hag is the right man for the job.

The new boss, however, cannot get rid of the entire team. Old names will go, even if they recently only arrived, to make way for newer names whether from within the academy or from the transfer market.

Ten Hag believes in youth and will rely on that youth to win, to lose, to struggle and to grow during the course of a season. He will rely on them until they are good enough to reward his trust, just as Ajax have for years.

United will need patience and will have to let the visionary create his vision for this team. Should they fail to do so, Erik ten Hag will be a failure at the club, but not through any fault of his own.

Ajax gave the man the chance to mold the team as he saw fit and that trust was similarly rewarded. If United do not surrender the reins a little bit, they will only end up throttling themselves, the club and their new manager.