Man Utd legend Bryan Robson defends under-fire Ten Hag after injury crisis and backs Sir Jim Ratcliffe transfer spree
BRYAN ROBSON has defended under-fire Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag, following a disappointing campaign for the Red Devils.
The England legend, who played 465 times for the club, believes the Dutch boss has been hindered by injuries to key personnel this season.
Bryan Robson has defended under-fire Man Utd boss Erik Ten Hag
Ten Hag’s season has been disrupted by injuries to key players
Robbo is also hopeful new owners Ineos, headed by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, can make wholesale changes to the squad in the summer.
Robson, an ambassador for the club, told SunSport: “We’re not in the league position we’d like to be in.
“I think the manager has had a lot to put up with, including the injuries we’ve had – which is part and parcel of the game and you can’t get away from that.
“Sometimes you have a bad season with a lot of injuries. So he’s had to cope with that, which is why we’ve conceded a lot of goals.
“At certain parts of the season, we look good and we put it together. But it’s not good enough Manchester United, it has got to be better.
“We’re still in the FA Cup semi-final, and it’s a must-win game – not just for the manager – but for the club itself.”
Manchester United have been without first-team regulars throughout the campaign.
Luke Shaw, Lisandro Martinez, Raphael Varane, Rasmus Hojgaard, Mason Mount, Christian Eriksen and Aaron Wan-Bissaka are some of the players who’ve missed large chunks of the season.
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Back in February, Ratcliffe completed his purchase of a stake at Old Trafford.
The club have since been linked with a host of big-name transfers.
Robson, who recently launched a new business venture offering financial advice, added: “I can see the new ownership and the running of the club is going to be different.
“We don’t know exactly how that’s going to work yet.
“But I am sure we will see by the end of the season, we see where we are in Europe, hopefully we’ve won a trophy.
“It will be interesting to see what we do in the summer, how we structure the club, and how we start to improve the squad of players.”
Man Utd are LUCKY to be seventh in the table… one particular stat is terrible, say Dave Kidd
By Dave Kidd
THE frightening thing about Manchester United’s season is that they should really be LOWER than seventh in the Premier League.
Even during their current run of one win in seven league matches, United’s results have been better than their performances.
Erik ten Hag’s team deserved to lose each of their last three drawn games against Brentford, Liverpool and Bournemouth.
On goal difference, United are ninth in the league, while only seven teams have scored fewer than their 47 goals.
And if we give any credence to ‘expected points’, then that stat would have them 15th in the table.
If Ten Hag’s men lose Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final to Championship side Coventry, it should not come as a major surprise.
Click here to read Dave Kidd’s column in full.
To read more from Dave Kidd, click here.
United currently sit in 7th position in the Premier League, 13 points off a top four finish.
While Champions League qualification appears to be out of reach, they could still qualify for the Europa League.
They face Coventry City in the FA Cup semi-final on Sunday.
