Asked to summarise the relationship between manager Erik ten Hag and Manchester United's new management team ahead of next season, a club source put it very bluntly: “It's like a marriage where someone has been unfaithful,” he said. “Now they are back together and trying to make it work.”
The parallels are obvious. United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his INEOS team, managed by Sir Dave Brailsford, made no secret of their doubts about Ten Hag towards the end of last season. This led to meetings with potential new partners (among them Thomas Tuchel and Roberto De Zerbi) before ultimately deciding to stick with their long-time manager. Ratcliffe and Brailsford have sought to create some sense of stability by extending the Dutchman’s contract for a further year, which will, in theory, keep him at Old Trafford until 2026.
But heading into Saturday’s season opener against Manchester City in the Community Shield (live stream on ESPN+, 9:50 a.m. ET, US only), there remains a sense of uncertainty and plenty of unanswered questions. Are United closer to the team that finished eighth in the Premier League last season, or the one that beat City 2-1 in the FA Cup final? Can Ten Hag make the most of his second chance, and how long are Ratcliffe and Brailsford willing to stick with him?
There were times in April and May when Ten Hag was visibly shaken by questions about his job, but he cut a much more relaxed figure during pre-season. He has refused to criticise INEOS, the conglomerate headed by Ratcliffe, for the way it conducted its business after the FA Cup final and has instead done his best to cling to the olive branch that has been extended to him.
Ten Hag said in an interview during the US tour that Ratcliffe's faith would only be demonstrated in the worst of times of poor form, but sources say he understands the way to strengthen his position is to get off to a good start. The Community Shield against City, somewhere between a pre-season friendly and something more serious, is not a referendum on his future, but it is coming.
Pre-season defeats to Arsenal and Liverpool in America have largely been ignored, but if they lose to City the noise around Ten Hag will start up again. Another poor result when the Premier League begins against Fulham at Old Trafford next Friday will increase the volume of those calling for a change.
Last season, there was a feeling that Ten Hag was immediately put on the back foot after a lacklustre performance against Wolverhampton Wanderers on the opening weekend and cannot afford a repeat, particularly in the face of Ratcliffe, Brailsford, new chief executive Omar Berrada and sporting director Dan Ashworth.
Asked to recall the start of last season and the buildup to that game against the Wolves, sources told ESPN there was a sense, even then, that something “wasn't quite right.”
It was a tough tour of the US, with too much travel and little free time for the players. In retrospect, it was no great surprise to club members that United started with six defeats in their first 10 games. From there, the season never quite recovered. This summer, Ten Hag has softened his approach, allowing the players to go out for coffee on Rodeo Drive during downtime between sessions.
A change in itinerary was also welcomed, with a 10-day training camp at UCLA in Los Angeles instead of brief stops in various cities in different time zones. Overall, the summer has been viewed as positive, but that doesn't mean all the problems have gone away.
The injuries that plagued last season are back in the form of a three-month lay-off for new signing Leny Yoro and a six-week absence for striker Rasmus Højlund, both of whom were ruled out of the tour opener against Arsenal.
Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelöf, Luke Shaw and Aaron Wan-Bissaka are all doubts to face City, which could leave Ten Hag with just three fit, experienced defenders at Wembley in Lisandro Martínez, Diogo Dalot and Jonny Evans. United fans have become accustomed to Ten Hag picking the strongest possible team for every game, especially when trophies are at stake, but he said more than once in his press conference on Thursday that he will take “no risks” against City.
In doing so, he made it clear that he does not want a repeat of the issues that played such a large part in last season’s problems. The concern is that if there are more injuries, Ten Hag will have to deal with virtually the same squad that finished the 2023-24 season. Yoro has arrived to replace Raphaël Varane and Joshua Zirkzee has arrived to replace Anthony Martial, but many of the same questions remain.
Are there enough goals? Is Casemiro still good enough to be a starting midfielder? What is the best position for Mason Mount? The list goes on. Ideally, United would sign another centre-back, a full-back and a central midfielder before the deadline but, at the moment, there is an argument that the squad is no stronger than it was 12 months ago.
It has been a quiet transfer window so far for many clubs, but it will worry fans that Ten Hag appears happy with the options at his disposal.
“We know what we're doing and we're in a good position with the squad,” he said on Thursday. “We have a squad where every position is double-occupied.”
The question, however, is not how many players he has, but whether they are good enough to significantly improve on last year's performances. For all the problems Ten Hag experienced last season, he at least finished with a trophy and this week he was keen to remind his team of that.
When they all met at Carrington for the first time this summer, he organised a meeting to show his players footage of the celebrations after lifting the FA Cup. He asked them to remember the feeling and challenged them to replicate it.
Victory over City at Wembley two months ago helped ensure that Ten Hag retained his job. If he does so again on Saturday, it will be a positive first step towards answering some key questions and ensuring his marriage of convenience with Ratcliffe and INEOS becomes a happy one.
