Manchester United legend Gary Pallister was deeply impressed by what he saw from an Erik ten Hag signing under Ruben Amorim in the FA Cup match on Sunday.
The Red Devils lifted the FA Cup trophy last season under Erik ten Hag after Manchester United’s sensational win over Manchester City in the final at Wembley.
Fast-forward from the 2024 FA Cup final in May to late October and Ten Hag was sacked by the Premier League club after a poor start to the 2024-25 campaign.
Ruben Amorim left Sporting CP and the 39-year-old Portuguese arrived at the Red Devils last November and replaced the Dutchman in the Old Trafford dugout.
United began their FA Cup title defence on the weekend and Amorim’s men defied the odds to pick up a sensational win over Arsenal at the Emirates.
Bruno Fernandes broke the deadlock in the second half of the third-round tie before Diogo Dalot was sent off after picking up his second booking of the match.
Arsenal defender Gabriel forced the FA Cup showdown into extra-time after pulling the Gunners level with United in regular playing time.
United and Arsenal played out 30 minutes of extra-time before settling the match on penalties, with all five of the Red Devils’ spot-kick takers converting.
Pallister praises Man Utd star vs Arsenal
Speaking to Tribal Football, Gary Pallister praised three Manchester United players for their performances against Arsenal in the FA Cup win on penalties.
The 59-year-old former United and England defender waxed lyrical about the three-man backline that is now clicking under manager Ruben Amorim.
Ruben Amorim immediately switched United to his tactics after his arrival at Old Trafford and the Red Devils have been playing with three central defenders.
Harry Maguire has been the preferred pick as the central figure in the three-man backline, with Matthijs de Ligt on the right and Lisandro Martinez on the left.
Pallister praised Lisandro Martinez and Harry Maguire for being “solid,” but the United legend felt Matthijs de Ligt was “outstanding” against Arsenal.
“The way the other three are performing right now it will be difficult, but he’s getting minutes on the pitch, so we’re only going to see him improve, hopefully,” he said.
“He’s a young lad and he’s learning his way in English football. He’s come with a big reputation but he’s played in a different league.
“This league will be a lot more physical and robust. But De Ligt was outstanding on Sunday and Maguire and Martinez were solid, committed and tough.”
Pallister reacts to Man Utd FA Cup result
Matthijs de Ligt made his name under Erik ten Hag at Ajax before the Dutch centre-back was reunited with the former United manager at Old Trafford last summer.
United agreed to sign former Ajax duo De Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui from German side Bayern Munich in a deal worth nearly £60m in 2024.
De Ligt has stepped up since his arrival at United last August and the former Juventus and Bayern Munich star has been a solid presence in the backline.
Pallister admitted that he was thrilled with the performance that Amorim’s men delivered against Arsenal in the third round of the FA Cup.
“I thought the whole team was terrific,” he said.
“I thought they scrapped and fought, you know, all the things we’ve been asking of this United team for a while now.
“We’ve been looking for a bit of togetherness and for them to show some team spirit and I think we saw that in abundance in the last two games.”
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
