Man Utd have a double act Erik ten Hag needs to upgrade on after Arsenal defeat

Rangnick believes full pre-season will help ten Hag at Man Utd

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Erik ten Hag will be the manager of Manchester United next season. And the Ajax boss certainly has plenty of work to do at Old Trafford, with Saturday’s 3-1 defeat to Arsenal highlighting where the club are at. In full-backs Diogo Dalot and Alex Telles, it’s clear the Dutchman has a double act he needs to upgrade on when he takes over from Ralf Rangnick at the end of the campaign.

Manchester United went into their game with Arsenal looking to bounce back after their 4-0 defeat to Liverpool last time out.

And while their performances at the Emirates was better than the one mustered at Anfield, it was still another disappointing day.

Arsenal were superior in every department, claiming all three points courtesy of goals from Nuno Tavares, Bukayo Saka and Granit Xhaka.

Tavares put the Gunners ahead inside three minutes, converting from close range after a good save from David De Gea.

Saka then doubled their lead from the penalty spot after a foul by Alex Telles, with Cristiano Ronaldo pulling one back.

But Arsenal secured victory through Xhaka’s thunderbolt strike that sailed past De Gea and into the bottom corner.

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For United, there were many bad performers.

Jadon Sancho cut a subdued figure, while Bruno Fernandes’ penalty miss compounded yet another miserable afternoon for the Portugal international.

However, for United, the performances of Dalot and Telles were particularly alarming.

Both players weren’t first-choice full-backs at the start of the campaign, when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer ruled the roost.

And it’s clear that they’re no better than Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Luke Shaw, who have also had their own issues this term.

Dalot did admittedly threaten going forward, hitting the woodwork twice on the day.

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But the Portugal international was abject defensively, with Arsenal attacking his flank time and time again.

Dalot is good technically but, when it comes to chasing runners and getting stuck in, leaves plenty to be desired.

And, at left-back, Telles was no better.

In fact, we’d go as far to say the Brazil international was the worst player on the pitch as his side missed out on all three points.

Saka terrorised Telles all throughout the game, with the former Porto star now likely to have a sleepless night as a result.

And it’s clear that, as Ten Hag prepares for life at Old Trafford, he’ll need to strengthen in both areas.

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Wan-Bissaka and Shaw, even when they’re fully fit, have shown they’re nowhere near consistent enough for United.

So that’s another area the Red Devils will need to address as they plan for a brighter future with Ten Hag in the dugout.

Rio Ferdinand was critical of United after their defeat to Arsenal on Saturday, insisting things have been worse under Rangnick than they were under Solskjaer.

“First of all, credit to Arsenal,” he stated.

“They got the job done, by no means a top performance today but they got what is needed at this point of the season, and that is three points.

“Manchester United, they had an opportunity to get back in this game, they had chances, obviously the penalty.

“They were there for the taking Arsenal, but Manchester United did not smell blood and big moments like those they need to learn to take.

“Being brutally honest, (Ralf) Rangnick has come in and it has got worse.”

On whether his side can finish in the top four, he added: “Yeah, that is it for the top four.

“Manchester United have absolutely no chance, it’s done.”

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