Sport

Erik ten Hag slams ‘unprofessional’ United as pundits take lumps after Liverpool embarrassment

United matched a 90-year-old record they'll not soon forget as a result of the defeat.

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 6th March 2023

Erik ten Hag has slammed his Manchester United players after their hefty defeat to Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday.

The Dutch coach was on the end of an unbelievable 7-0 thrashing in just his first visit to Merseyside and just his second competitive match against Liverpool as United manager, with the home team only scoring one in the first half before slotting in another six in the second 45.

Despite starting the game ok and showing some semblance of control in the first half, even scoring what they thought was the opener before it was ruled offside, United clearly lost their heads and once the second goal went in, the floodgates were well and truly open.

Speaking to media after the game, ten Hag summed things up by saying that mistakes can happen but “it’s not possible to make the wrong decision in the transition and not match the runs, we didn’t track back. That is, for me, unprofessional”.

ten Hag labels his team’s performance as “unprofessional”.

ten Hag went on to repeat his “very unprofessional” verdict in the post-match press conference too, going on to state that “as a team, you have to stick together. That is what we didn’t do. It is a surprise for me, I didn’t see this from my team.”

As per BBC Sport, the 53-year-old conceded that he didn’t recognise his side in the second half: “I don’t think it is us. I don’t think it is Manchester United. It was really bad, really poor.” As well as confessing his anger, he also admitted that this was a “reality check” for the squad, especially after the “resilience” and results they have shown over the last few weeks.

Unsurprisingly, he wasn’t the only one with plenty to say following the battering: captain Bruno Fernandes hinted that the result could be ‘psychologically damaging‘ for the rest of the season Luke Shaw said he and his teammates will be forced to watch back the “embarrassment” in great detail.

Turning to the pundits, club legends Gary Neville and Paul Scholes labelled the game a “shambles” and even “criminal” at times, with the former calling out Bruno’s second-half performance in particular as a “disgrace” — the midfielder playing most of the game stuck out of position on the left wing.

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The defeat itself was Man United’s heaviest defeat in any competition since Boxing Day, 1931, when they were hit for seven by Wolves.

On the other hand, many went on to insist that was just a ‘blip’ for United and that they will obviously “bounce back”, but as Micah Richards told Match of the Day, it’s hard to call that result anything other than what it was: a “humiliation”.

You can watch Erik ten Hag’s post-match press conference in full and the highlights from Liverpool vs United HERE.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Image — beINSPORTS/Sky Sports/Liverpool (via Twitter)

Sport

Manchester City issue statement as they reach agreement over ‘APT’ controversy

Danny Jones Danny Jones Man City and Premier League reach settlement over APT

Manchester City and the Premier League have agreed a settlement over their long, drawn-out APT rules controversy.

For starters, no: this is not to do with the outstanding 115 charges still alleged against the local side; that’s to do with FFP.

In case you weren’t aware of the latest with this story, after winning a watershed court case against the English top flight last October regarding ‘Associated Party Transactions’ (APT) – an outcome with the Premier League contested – Man City have now put the case behind them.

Updating supporters on social media this week, the club revealed that the situation has now been resolved and is essentially over.

Sharing the update on social media, they gave a brief overview of how the debate related to transparency surrounding sponsorship deals and commercial dealings was finally concluded.

A statement reads as follows: “The Premier League and Manchester City FC have reached a settlement in relation to the arbitration commenced by the club earlier this year concerning the Premier League’s Associated Party Transaction, and as a result, the parties have agreed to terminate the proceedings.

“This settlement brings an end to the dispute between the parties regarding the APT Rules. As part of the settlement, Manchester City accepts that the current APT Rules are valid and binding.  

“It has been agreed that neither the Premier League nor the club will be making any further comment about the matter.

Although the decision was ultimately reached following extensive investigation by an independent commission, some are already speculating about what this could mean in terms of wider controversies surrounding the club. It’s also opened the door for them to resume partnerships already in the pipeline.

Conversely, the Premier League itself is yet to offer any public response of its own, with the assurance that the City Football Group (CFG) accepts that said APT Rules are “valid and binding” essentially being the final word.

Many fans have been quick to question online whether this has any impact on the aforementioned FFP saga (don’t forget City’s 115 charges were actually increased to 130 back in December), but very little is still publicly known about the latter.

The hearing itself technically began this time last year, but we have yet to actually find out what the result was, despite the 10-week process ending in December.

Meanwhile, that isn’t the only concern for die-hard Blues of late…

Manchester City supporters groups call on club and fellow fans to ‘make their voices heard’

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Featured Images — The Manc Group

Sport

André Onana is set to leave Manchester United on loan as early as next week

Danny Jones Danny Jones Onana leaving Man United on loan

Manchester United goalkeeper André Onana is reportedly leaving the club as early as next week as he prepares to make a late move to mainland Europe.

It’s fair to characterise Onana‘s time at Old Trafford as fraught and divisive, to say the least, but now the Cameroonian keeper is set to leave Man United on loan for the rest of the season.

While most dealings had to be completed at the start of the month, Turkey’s own transfer window is still open for another few days, and now, the seemingly exiled shot-stopper is set to spend a potentially future-defining spell in the Süper Lig.

Preparing for his soon-to-be fully completed move to Trabzonspor, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano states that he will complete the deal next week.

As detailed by Romano, the 29-year-old former Ajax number one – who arrived as one of the first key signings under Erik ten Hag – has personally agreed to the terms of the switch.

It is a little surprise too, as the journalist claims that Onana will earn more money overall, with the Turkish team set to fully cover his United salary, plus the signing fee and bonuses, taking the overall package beyond his base wage of £120,000 a week.

Although both clubs have agreed to a season-long loan, with Trabzonspor promising more than his normal pay packet has been at Old Trafford, there is no loan fee or obligation/option to buy included.

Safe to say that not all supporters will be exactly sad to see him go, as despite some good moments in the shirt (including besting both David de Gea and Peter Schmeichel’s penalty save ratio early doors), his tenure in Manchester has been less ‘Theatre of Dreams’ has been far from it.

So much so, in fact, that in response to the news of his imminent departure, a compilation of all his unforced errors thus far was quickly shared online:

Once his medical has been completed and the final Ts have been crossed, Onana will be one of several statement outgoings from Man United this summer, with the likes of Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho, Jadon Sancho and Rasmus Højlund all leaving the club in the last couple of months.

While only Garnacho’s was a direct sale, Onana’s is the only other one of these loan deals which doesn’t necessarily imply a permanent move away as yet.

Either way, the ever-controversial keeper will need to make the next 12 months or so very impressive if he has any hopes of standing between the sticks for United again, especially with Altay Bayindir now quickly returning to the second string with the arrival of Senne Lammens.

What about you, Reds – are you sad to see him go, and do you think this time away could see him revive his Premier League career?

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Featured Images — Happiraphael (via Wikimedia Commons)

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