Last season’s victory in the FA Cup final might well go down as a seminal moment in Manchester United’s history due to the vast repercussions of it.
Erik ten Hag might not have been United manager today were it not for that result, and many other players, current or prospective, could have lost trust in the project.
As it stands, the manager got a contract extension, a new team of executives arrived and the sporting project looks promising all of a sudden.
Now, nearly two months after that fateful final, Ten Hag has lifted the lid on what it was like after the FA Cup final, and how a lot of patience was needed from his side during what he described as a “strange state of affairs”.
Erik ten Hag: Communication ‘broke down’
Ten Hag’s comments make it seem like his story at United almost ended very differently as Ineos crawled their way to a final decision after assessing every option.
He spoke to AD Sportwereld (As quoted by The Athletic), and said that the communication with Ineos completely ‘broke down’ after the final.
The Dutchman had to keep calm and not panic in the face of uncertainty as he had to ‘wait it out’ what he described as a ‘strange state of affairs.
He said: “Yes, communication broke down (with INEOS). But I was just celebrating holidays with my loved ones, and I let things happen. I have no influence on that.
“Of course, that is a strange state of affairs. But it’s not like I panicked. It’s a decision that was out of my hands. I just waited it out. At that moment you just think in two scenarios: either we continue or not. It’s that simple and I’m level-headed enough to look at it that way.”
Ultimately, Ineos reached a decision to keep him at the helm, and Ten Hag revealed the ‘confrontational’ conversations that were needed after that.
He said: “They didn’t say ‘we still want to continue’, but: ‘we want to continue’. The argument they gave was in short: we have looked at everything and compared everything, but we think we already have the best manager in-house.
“Then I said, ‘Then we have to discuss a number of things about how we will interact with each other and work together’. We had a good, honest, but also confrontational conversation about this. As it should be at the top.”
Crucial season to shake off ‘Marriage of convenience’ vibe
Both Ten Hag and Ineos have been remarkably open about the tumultuous summer when the management talked to other head coaches with Ten Hag still on the payroll.
The Dutchman has since relayed his version of events with direct bullishness, clearly feeling strengthened by Ineos’ assessment.
However, it is notable that Ineos haven’t actually ‘extended’ his contract, just triggered the option of a year, basically making this year a ‘prove yourself last season was an aberration’ experiment.
The new ownership team has been open about how they see the role of the manager in the new structure, as he is no longer the be-all and end-all at the club.
It has all led to a feeling that both parties are still in somewhat of a ‘marriage of convenience’, where Ineos kept him because other candidates weren’t better, and Ten Hag stayed because he has a reputation to rebuild.
This season is crucial to shake off that vibe, as a return to the form of the first season under Ten Hag will firmly exorcise the demons of the 2023/24 season which still looms large over the club.
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