OF ALL THE clips to go viral on social media following United’s win over City in the Manchester derby last weekend, there is one that helps to sum up the complete change in attitude towards the fundamentals for everyone at Old Trafford.
Casemiro has gone off the pitch after receiving treatment for an injury. The home side are leading 2-1 at this stage and the Brazilian midfielder is gesticulating wildly to the referee to allow him to return.
He is ignored by the man in the middle, who allows City to re-start the game.
Apoplectic as he watches it continue, the United physio is attempting to rein the player in, only to be continually pushed away. Once he gets the signal to return, with City attacking down the opposite right flank, Casemiro sprints back into the penalty box to defend a cross where Erling Haaland is waiting near the penalty spot.
“He’s United in his spirit and soul” is one description of the clip, which has been viewed 50,000 times on Instagram.
Of some of the 400-plus comments, many praised the “desire”, “commitment” and “passion” of the 30-year-old.
“He can never be allowed to leave, never. What a human.”
Something so basic and simple as wanting to sprint back onto the pitch struck a chord.
Bruno Fernandes (left) celebrates with Casemiro after the Manchester derby. PA
PA
It wasn’t that long ago United players were running the opposite way.
One of them, when asked to come on as a late substitute earlier in the season, did just that when he refused, heading down the tunnel and making his exit from the stadium before the final whistle had even blown.
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Cristiano Ronaldo is no longer at the club, his pre-World Cup interview with Piers Morgan eventually leading to a parting of the ways.
He was already becoming a peripheral figure in Erik ten Hag’s plans and now, entering into a week which will determine whether United truly are title contenders, it’s testament to the United’s manager’s handling of the matter that no one is wondering whether Ronaldo’s absence will come back to haunt him.
If anything, it has only helped to solidify belief in his judgement.
See, also, dropping Marcus Rashford for oversleeping and missing a team meeting prior to the away clash with Wolverhampton Wanderers on New Year’s Eve.
Winning football matches – as United did at Molineux when the England forward came off the bench to score the only goal following a laboured first half – is the reason no one is casting doubt on his methods.
It’s simple, all Ten Hag has to do is maintain the run they are on, because once there is a dip then it won’t be long before people look to the five-game winning run that has helped propel them into the Champions League places and point out that beating Fulham, Nottingham Forest, Wolves, Bournemouth and City is hardly worthy of drawing lineage to the great United teams of the past.
Erik ten Hag (right) with Luke Shaw. PA
PA
And yet it does feel as if a significant shift is underway.
United are not just winning, they are doing so in a manner that has eluded them for pretty much the entirety of the post-Alex Ferguson reign. Mixing exciting, powerful football with an ability to overcome adversity.
There is a reason, after all, that Ferguson insisted on the title of the 2021 documentary on his life to be entitled: Never Give In.
The Scot is the man who has shaped the modern Manchester United, finally it seems there is a successor capable of instilling the kind of standards that enabled Ferguson to dominate the English game for two decades.
“I looked at the culture of the club. I asked “how did Manchester United become great?” Ten Hag told Voetbal International in an interview 11 days ago.
“The club has bought an unimaginable number of players in recent years who have not been good enough. Most purchases have been average – and at United average is not good enough. United’s shirt weighs heavily.”
No one is expecting Ten Hag to be capable of similar longevity, but all it would take is one season of wonder for him to end up a revered figure.
This week might well determine whether it’s capable of happening in his first campaign, and tonight’s trip to Crystal Palace is fitting given it was at Selhurst Park that he made his first public appearance as United’s new manager, when he watched from the stands as Ralf Rangnick oversaw a 1-0 defeat on the final day of last season.
Ten Hag (centre) watches from the stands at Selhurst Park back in May. PA
PA
That felt like Ground Zero for a club ravaged by decline. The German coach said his replacement would need to perform “open-heart surgery” to begin the United rescue act, and it’s telling that only three players from that starting XI in May 2022 did so last Saturday – David De Gea, Fred and Bruno Fernandes.
Victory in London tonight is simply must if Sunday’s trip back to the English capital to face league leaders Arsenal is to resemble anything like some of their heavyweight battles of the 1990s and early 2000s.
Two wins in the next five days will leave United three off the top and in the mix with City, not to mention Eddie Howe’s re-energised Newcastle who are still ahead of United on goal difference.
It feels like a sustained challenge at the top is still far too early for this United squad, and that delivering some silverware alongside comfortable Champions League qualification will be a sign of significant progress.
And yet, did anyone really see Mikel Arteta’s side emerge into the force they have become, even after three years in charge?
The same goes for United, who might just be building up the same kind of momentum which Ferguson’s great teams were renowned for entering the final months of the season.
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United return to site of their Ground Zero as Ten Hag's rebuild inspires title talk
OF ALL THE clips to go viral on social media following United’s win over City in the Manchester derby last weekend, there is one that helps to sum up the complete change in attitude towards the fundamentals for everyone at Old Trafford.
Casemiro has gone off the pitch after receiving treatment for an injury. The home side are leading 2-1 at this stage and the Brazilian midfielder is gesticulating wildly to the referee to allow him to return.
He is ignored by the man in the middle, who allows City to re-start the game.
Apoplectic as he watches it continue, the United physio is attempting to rein the player in, only to be continually pushed away. Once he gets the signal to return, with City attacking down the opposite right flank, Casemiro sprints back into the penalty box to defend a cross where Erling Haaland is waiting near the penalty spot.
“He’s United in his spirit and soul” is one description of the clip, which has been viewed 50,000 times on Instagram.
Of some of the 400-plus comments, many praised the “desire”, “commitment” and “passion” of the 30-year-old.
“He can never be allowed to leave, never. What a human.”
Something so basic and simple as wanting to sprint back onto the pitch struck a chord.
It wasn’t that long ago United players were running the opposite way.
One of them, when asked to come on as a late substitute earlier in the season, did just that when he refused, heading down the tunnel and making his exit from the stadium before the final whistle had even blown.
Cristiano Ronaldo is no longer at the club, his pre-World Cup interview with Piers Morgan eventually leading to a parting of the ways.
He was already becoming a peripheral figure in Erik ten Hag’s plans and now, entering into a week which will determine whether United truly are title contenders, it’s testament to the United’s manager’s handling of the matter that no one is wondering whether Ronaldo’s absence will come back to haunt him.
If anything, it has only helped to solidify belief in his judgement.
See, also, dropping Marcus Rashford for oversleeping and missing a team meeting prior to the away clash with Wolverhampton Wanderers on New Year’s Eve.
Winning football matches – as United did at Molineux when the England forward came off the bench to score the only goal following a laboured first half – is the reason no one is casting doubt on his methods.
It’s simple, all Ten Hag has to do is maintain the run they are on, because once there is a dip then it won’t be long before people look to the five-game winning run that has helped propel them into the Champions League places and point out that beating Fulham, Nottingham Forest, Wolves, Bournemouth and City is hardly worthy of drawing lineage to the great United teams of the past.
And yet it does feel as if a significant shift is underway.
United are not just winning, they are doing so in a manner that has eluded them for pretty much the entirety of the post-Alex Ferguson reign. Mixing exciting, powerful football with an ability to overcome adversity.
There is a reason, after all, that Ferguson insisted on the title of the 2021 documentary on his life to be entitled: Never Give In.
The Scot is the man who has shaped the modern Manchester United, finally it seems there is a successor capable of instilling the kind of standards that enabled Ferguson to dominate the English game for two decades.
“I looked at the culture of the club. I asked “how did Manchester United become great?” Ten Hag told Voetbal International in an interview 11 days ago.
“The club has bought an unimaginable number of players in recent years who have not been good enough. Most purchases have been average – and at United average is not good enough. United’s shirt weighs heavily.”
No one is expecting Ten Hag to be capable of similar longevity, but all it would take is one season of wonder for him to end up a revered figure.
This week might well determine whether it’s capable of happening in his first campaign, and tonight’s trip to Crystal Palace is fitting given it was at Selhurst Park that he made his first public appearance as United’s new manager, when he watched from the stands as Ralf Rangnick oversaw a 1-0 defeat on the final day of last season.
That felt like Ground Zero for a club ravaged by decline. The German coach said his replacement would need to perform “open-heart surgery” to begin the United rescue act, and it’s telling that only three players from that starting XI in May 2022 did so last Saturday – David De Gea, Fred and Bruno Fernandes.
Victory in London tonight is simply must if Sunday’s trip back to the English capital to face league leaders Arsenal is to resemble anything like some of their heavyweight battles of the 1990s and early 2000s.
Two wins in the next five days will leave United three off the top and in the mix with City, not to mention Eddie Howe’s re-energised Newcastle who are still ahead of United on goal difference.
It feels like a sustained challenge at the top is still far too early for this United squad, and that delivering some silverware alongside comfortable Champions League qualification will be a sign of significant progress.
And yet, did anyone really see Mikel Arteta’s side emerge into the force they have become, even after three years in charge?
The same goes for United, who might just be building up the same kind of momentum which Ferguson’s great teams were renowned for entering the final months of the season.
Originally published at 06.15
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