Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag claimed after the 1-1 draw against Burnley on Saturday that his side are one of the most dynamic and entertaining teams in the league at the moment.
The Red Devils conceded an 87th-minute equaliser from the penalty spot and have won just one of their last six Premier League games.
Man United will not be playing Champions League football next season from the look of things as they have not performed consistently well enough this term, but Ten Hag reckons his side have been “creating loads of chances by playing good football.”
Micah Richards does not agree with the Dutchman and was left puzzled when he heard Gary Lineker quote him on the latest episode of The Rest is Football podcast.
Lineker: “Well, according to Erik Ten Hag, Manchester United are one of the most dynamic and entertaining teams in the country.”
Shearer: “No, they are not.”
Richards: “Who said that?”
Lineker: “Erik ten Hag, after the game. He had a big thing about it.”
Richards: “I didn’t hear him say that part. I listened to a couple of his quotes, but I didn’t hear them.”
Lineker: “They were there, and they were quite widely reported as well.”
Richards: “Say the quotes again, please.”
Lineker: “We have been and are one of the most entertaining and dynamic teams of the season.”
Richards: “Off the field, maybe. I don’t think he’s talking about ‘on the field’.”
Lineker: “They are generally good to watch because they don’t really bother with the midfield part defensively, so you’re always going to get end-to-end football, maybe that’s what he’s talking about.”
Shearer: “You just don’t know, do you? One day they can get a brilliant result and you think ‘what on earth has happened?’ and the next weekend they could be hopeless. You just don’t know what you’re going to get with them.”
Ajax used to play some brilliant and eye-catching attacking football under Ten Hag, but the same cannot be said of his Man United side.
The Red Devils appointed him because of his style of play in the first place, but we are yet to see anything similar to what he produced with the Eredivisie team with his current squad at the Old Trafford club.
Whether that would ever happen remains to be seen, but a major squad overhaul is expected in the summer, with only the trio of Kobbie Mainoo, Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hojlund strictly off-limits to would-be suitors.
Man United are capable of playing beautiful football, getting the needed results and challenging for major silverware, but major changes are required if that is to happen anytime soon, and Sir Jim Ratcliffe will be desperate to get that done in the coming months.
