Erik Ten Hag Admits Players Didn’t Want To Join Man United Last Summer
Erik ten Hag says he sees a “big difference” between now and last summer when he talks to players about joining Manchester United.
Asked whether transfer targets tell him that the club needs to be in the Champions League for them to join, Ten Hag said:
“I see big difference in comparison with last year.
“There were a lot of reservations when I spoke last year with players.
“And now, many players, they see in the project that’s going on, the dynamic and ambition in this project, the quality especially in this project, and they are really keen to come.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference ahead of United’s home Premier League clash with Wolves today, the boss reiterated:
“There were a lot of reservations last year, a lot of doubts when we approached players. And this year, many quality players, they really want to come.”
Asked if he was concerned that the players are running low in energy at the wrong point in the season, the boss said:
“It was quite clear that is the case, but we know what is the reason behind.
“It’s never been an excuse for these performances, but it’s a reason, the squad looked fatigued, and was fatigued, I could see it.
“But that was a good thing, we’ve had a week, and now we have another week, and I notice on the training ground, the energy’s back.”
The manager was also asked several questions about goalkeeper David de Gea’s form but insisted there was no chance he would be dropped at this stage.
In the first part of the press conference, Ten Hag had revealed that Marcus Rashford is a major doubt for today’s game but Raphael Varane has returned from injury.
