How Erik ten Hag ignored the warning signs at Man United

The Ronaldo drama may be gone, but there is a crisis at Old Trafford, and Erik ten Hag had ignored its warning signs.

Manchester United winger, Jadon Sancho faces a potential crisis at Old Trafford with manager, Erik ten Hag over his latest comments on the Man United coach.

The Dutch manager had accused the England international of not training at peak form to warrant his selection into the United squad that faced Arsenal in Sunday’s defeat, and in backlash, Jadon Sancho quickly tweeted to discredit Erik ten Hag’s account.

According to the former Borussia Dortmund player, he was being scapegoated at the club despite maintaining his silence. He went further to warn fans not to believe the reports that were being said about him in the media.

“Please don’t believe everything you read,” Sancho wrote. “I will not allow people saying things that are completely untrue; I have conducted myself very well in training this week. I believe there are other reasons for this matter that I won’t go into; I’ve been a scapegoat for a long time which isn’t fair!”

However, this exchange was further scrutinized by Manchester Evening News reporter Sam Luckhurst, who shed light on previous instances where England’s national team coach, Gareth Southgate, had limited Sancho’s playing time due to perceived poor performances in training.

Luckhurst’s analysis revealed that Sancho’s playing time during Euro 2020 was curtailed until the quarter-finals for similar reasons, with Southgate confirming this approach and noting an improvement following Sancho’s transfer to Manchester United.

Luckhurst stated,

“Sancho entitled to feel aggrieved by Ten Hag persisting with Antony, who’s been dreadful, and Martial starting ahead of him. But it’s a dire state at #mufc that players are emboldened to publicly call out the manager. Sancho’s not been ‘scapegoated.'”

Jadon Sancho’s move to Manchester United from Borussia Dortmund in 2021 came with high expectations, given his impressive performance in Germany.

However, the 23-year-old has struggled to maintain consistent form in the Premier League, contributing just nine goals and six assists in his 58 appearances for the club.

Erik ten Hag defended his decision not to select Sancho for the Arsenal clash, emphasizing the importance of reaching a high standard in daily training at Manchester United.

“Jadon, on his performances in training, we did not select him,” he explained.

“You have to reach a level every day at Manchester United, and we can make choices in the front line. So, for this game, he was not selected.”