Raphael Varane sheds light on Erik ten Hag ‘always in conflict’ with Man Utd players – ‘I said…’

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Throughout Erik ten Hag’s often disastrous time as Manchester United manager, he had clashes with players which often became public.

While there were undoubtedly good moments for Erik ten Hag at the club, overall Manchester United’s current mess is partly down to him.

Ten Hag made some terrible signings at Old Trafford, which Ruben Amorim is now having to deal with as the head coach after taking over from the Dutchman.

Another thing which Ten Hag often receives criticism for was how he handled conflict with Jadon Sancho, with the winger spending months at the club training alone before he headed on loan to Borussia Dortmund and then Chelsea.

Ten Hag also had differences with Cristiano Ronaldo, which resulted in the club terminating the legendary forward’s contract.

Now, Raphael Varane has made a telling admission about these moments.

• READ MORE: Who is Cristiano Ronaldo? Meet one of football’s most iconic names and undisputed Man Utd legend

Raphael Varane says Erik ten Hag was ‘always in conflict’ at Manchester United

Varane left United last summer for free, joining Como where his career ultimately came to an end just 20 minutes into his debut as injuries caught up with him.

Despite his exit from the club, Varane played a key role in Leny Yoro’s arrival. This must mean he talked about the club positively to Yoro, however, the Frenchman has not been so positive with his assessment of Ten Hag’s managerial stay.

In an exclusive interview with The Athletic’s Charlotte Harpur, Varane discussed the former United boss, revealing he felt that Ten Hag actively sought confrontation with his players.

Varane explained that Ten Hag, “wanted to gain respect through fear, perhaps”.

“He always needed an example of a player who was alone the entire time he was at Manchester. He did that with at least one important player on the team. He was always in conflict with certain leaders of the group. That is his way of managing.”

Ronaldo and Sancho are the two main examples of this happening, however, Varane has suggested he was also a victim of Ten Hag’s methods.

Varane comments on his ‘not good relationship’ with Ten Hag

Ten Hag sounds like he was very difficult to work with, with unnecessary conflict no doubt also hindering the work he was able to do for United.

In the same interview with The Athletic, Varane explained that he had also had an interaction which resulted negatively in his game time being slashed by Ten Hag.

“We had a robust discussion”, Varane recalled. “We told each other some truths, but then I didn’t play for almost two months. I said I didn’t agree with certain ways of doing things regarding the relationship between him and the team. It wasn’t something that I thought was good for the team because some of the players weren’t at all satisfied. It was not good in terms of the relationship with the coach.

“He said ‘OK, I hear what you said’ and after that, I didn’t play.”

Ten Hag’s man management was appalling and this instance summed it up. This explains why he lost the dressing room considering how highly revered Varane was within the club.