The changes Ten Hag has made since Man United's derby day humbling
The last Manchester derby exposed United’s MANY flaws… But the 6-3 humbling was a blessing in disguise for Erik ten Hag, who has now made Casemiro his midfield general, got rid of Ronaldo and come down hard on his players ahead of Old Trafford rematch
- Man City thrashed Man United 6-3 in the first Manchester derby of the season
- Erik ten Hag has made a number of changes on and off the pitch since that loss
- He has made Casemiro his midfield general ever since that humbling defeat
- Ten Hag has also managed to get Cristiano Ronaldo out of the club
- The Dutchman has been hard on his player to raise standards at the club
- United are now seeking revenge when they face City again on Saturday
Manchester United are flying at the moment, winning all six of their matches since domestic football returned after the World Cup.
But it hasn’t all been plain sailing for Erik ten Hag’s men this term. The Red Devils lost their opening two games of the season against Brighton and Brentford, before being humbled by rivals Manchester City at the start of October.
That 6-3 defeat was a dismal afternoon for United, with some of their travelling fans leaving the Etihad Stadium before half time.
Manchester United were thrashed 6-3 by their rivals Manchester City in October
Erik ten Hag has had to make a number of changes since that dismal afternoon at the Etihad
It was a painful experience, but, in hindsight, a necessary one for ten Hag and his team. In fact, it was the most important match of his tenure so far.
Watching Erling Haaland and Phil Foden net hat-tricks will hardly have been pleasant viewing for the Dutchman, but Pep Guardiola’s men exposed so many of United’s flaws all in the space of 90 minutes.
It highlighted that Ten Hag needed to make changes, which he has. And they have worked. Since that loss United have picked up more points than City, and enter Saturday’s reverse fixture with a genuine chance of emerging victorious.
Sportsmail takes a look at what Ten Hag learned from United’s embarrassing showing three months ago, and the biggest changes he has made to turn things around at Old Trafford.
Casemiro has to play
United won four straight league games prior to their meeting with City in October, and Ten Hag decided not to rock the boat.
This meant sticking with Scott McTominay in midfield, while £70m summer signing Casemiro was left on the bench. That bold call did not pay off at all.
McTominay and co were given the run around by City’s midfield, with Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva pulling the strings behind Haaland and Foden.
Casemiro was introduced in the second half, but it was too little too late to rescue the result.
Casemiro coming into United’s midfield has proved to be a game-changer for the team
Having been eased into action during his opening month at the club, Casemiro could no longer be held back. He went straight into the starting line-up in the next game against Everton and registered an assist.
The Brazilian has not looked back since, starting each of United’s 10 league games since the debacle at the Etihad. United have won seven of those matches, losing just once.
He is the glue in United’s midfield, the player they have needed for years. It was understandable that Ten Hag wanted to give him time to settle in but he should have started against City the first time, and the Dutch coach was forced to learn the hard way.
He has not made the same mistake twice, and United are now a completely different team with Casemiro shielding their back four.
Shaw’s reprieve
Luke Shaw started the season poorly and could have no complaints when he was dropped after two games for Tyrell Malacia.
Malacia made the most of his opportunity as well, starring in a win against Liverpool that led to Rio Ferdinand comparing him to Patrice Evra. He didn’t play like Evra against City, though.
Phil Foden gave Malacia a torrid time, and he was hooked at half time. In came Shaw, and he did not fare much better after the interval.
Yet that game did indicate that Malacia wasn’t quite ready to be a regular starter for the Red Devils. Ten Hag realised that Shaw’s extra experience could be a key asset, and started picking the England international ahead of his Dutch counterpart once more.
Luke Shaw has produced some of his most consistent form since coming back into the team
Shaw has responded by delivering consistently. In the past, Shaw’s fitness and concentration have been questioned, but he now looks leaner than ever and has cut out silly errors from his game.
He has a case for being the left-back in the division this season, and has even shown he is more than capable of filling in as a left-sided centre-back in recent weeks.
Ten Hag now has full confidence in Shaw, and the 27-year-old is playing at the top of his game, knowing that he has the backing of his manager.
The beginning of the end for Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo wanted to leave United in the summer, but did not get his move away. After hardly featuring in pre-season, it was no great surprise that he was used sparingly in the opening weeks of the campaign.
Despite speculation of a rift between the pair, Ten Hag insisted that Ronaldo was part of his plans, but their relationship appeared to start breaking down beyond repair on that afternoon at the Etihad.
Having named Ronaldo on the bench, Ten Hag made five substitutes after the break, but did not bring on the Portuguese forward.
Ten Hag looked to explain his decision afterwards by claiming he chose not to use Ronaldo ‘out of respect for his career’, with United on their way to a heavy defeat.
Cristiano Ronaldo was left on the bench for United’s heavy defeat at City
It is hard to imagine that Ronaldo would have taken too kindly to not playing, though. Two weeks later, Ten Hag did want to bring Ronaldo on in the latter stages of his side’s 2-0 win against Tottenham, but the 37-year-old was annoyed at getting so little game time and stormed off down the tunnel before full time.
He was subsequently left out of the squad for the next game at Chelsea, but Ten Hag reintegrated him into the first team after that, even handing him the captain’s armband against Aston Villa in early November.
But the writing was on the wall, and that Villa match would prove to be Ronaldo’s final game in the famous red shirt.
After criticising Ten Hag and the club in a bombshell interview with Piers Morgan, Ronaldo’s contract was terminated by mutual consent.
The City game showed that United had enough problems on the pitch, and that Ten Hag didn’t need to be dealing with Ronaldo’s antics off it.
By snubbing him, this set the wheels in motion for Ronaldo’s exit, and United haven’t missed him at all so far.
Don’t cross Ten Hag
Ten Hag was hardly a pushover in his early weeks at the helm, as shown by his brave decision to drop club captain Harry Maguire, while also making his players run 8.5 miles after their 4-0 defeat by Brentford.
Yet he took the safe approach against City by naming the same team that had done well before the international break and it backfired.
City bullied United from start to finish, with Haaland powering above his markers to nod home the side’s second goal, while at the other end Marcus Rashford was sent flying by a shoulder barge from Manuel Akanji. It looked like men vs boys at times.
Erling Haaland bullied United’s defence on a humbling afternoon for the Red Devils
Since that day, Ten Hag has taken a stricter approach with his players. Just three weeks after the loss, Antony did a 720-degree spin during a Europa League clash with Sheriff Tiraspol while the game was goalless.
The Brazilian winger was labelled a ‘clown’ by Paul Scholes, and Ten Hag did not seem particularly impressed either as he took Antony off at half time.
While he did not publicly reprimand the player, it seemed a clear sign that Ten Hag did not want any complacency to creep into his team, putting results and performances above showboating.
A more recent example came when Marcus Rashford overslept ahead of United’s trip to Wolves. The England forward has been in the form of his life since the World Cup and the temptation would have been to let him get away with his minor discrepancy.
Marcus Rashford was dropped after oversleeping ahead of United’s game at Wolves
Instead, Ten Hag reacted by dropping Rashford to the bench. Another clear message – you must abide by the rules.
Rashford would come on as a half-time substitute to score the winning goal, providing the exact response that Ten Hag was looking for.
Standards appeared to have slipped prior to Ten Hag’s arrival, and there were few signs of them improving when he first joined, but United now look like a disciplined team that understand the level that they must reach both on and off the pitch.
The Sancho situation
Jadon Sancho started the game at the Etihad but failed to influence proceedings before he was taken off in the 70th minute.
Ten Hag did briefly stick with the 22-year-old in the following weeks, but eventually dropped him from his starting XI, and Sancho subsequently had a period away from the first-team amid concerns about his physical and mental health.
Ten Hag has been respectful of Sancho’s situation, refusing to give away too many details when asked for updates on an almost daily basis.
But he has made it clear that he will not rush Sancho’s return, and will only play him again when he feels the youngster is completely ready.
Ten Hag has not rushed Jadon Sancho back into action as he knows he needs him at his best
The City defeat demonstrated how when playing the best sides in the world, every player needs to be at the very top of their game.
City were a well-oiled machine that day, with everyone knowing their role as they pulled United from pillar to post.
To combat that, United must be equally organised, and that means having 11 players firing on all cylinders.
Ten Hag is fully aware that Sancho can be a major asset when at his best, but he is not at that level right now, and that is why he has been sidelined for the time being.
Building a team of ‘fighters’
Ten Hag recently spoke openly about the mess that he inherited at United when he first walked through the door last summer.
He was critical of the team’s mentality and lack of team spirit. In truth, it didn’t take a body language expert to realise that this was a major issue last season.
Players would frequently throw their arms in the air in frustration, and genuinely didn’t appear to enjoy playing with each other at times.
There were worryingly similar signs during the game at the Etihad that this sort of behaviour was creeping back into the squad.
Shoulders slumped as soon as the side went behind, and the players looked clueless as to how to stop the rot as City scored goal after goal.
Lisandro Martinez has helped bring a fighting spirit to the United team that was missing before
But the team’s mentality has changed since then, and that has been led by some big personalities in the changing room.
Ten Hag has spoken about having ‘fighters’ in his squad, and Casemiro and Lisandro Martinez certainly fall into that category.
They make up the spine of the team, driving Ten Hag’s men forward, and their attitude has rubbed off on the rest of the players.
The sign of a mentally strong team is to keep going until the final whistle, and United have done that time and again in recent months.
Casemiro, McTominay and Alejandro Garnacho have all netted last-minute goals for United since that City loss, proving that United are no longer willing to roll over for anybody.
Can United gain revenge against City?
United have been arguably the most impressive team in the top-flight since the World Cup, and have moved into the top four.
But they haven’t faced a top-half team since November, so facing City will be a major step up.
As well as being thrashed by City earlier this season, United were also swept aside in both fixtures last term, meaning recent history is against them.
Yet the Red Devils are certainly heading in the right direction. Ten Hag knows his best team – something that was still an issue in October – and he has a number of players in top form, none more so than Rashford.
City are a formidable side, and can make any opponent look foolish when at their brilliant best, but United are riding the crest of a wave, and with the added motivation of being able to move within a point of their rivals with a win, they will fancy their chances of putting things right this time around.
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