There are a countless reasons to criticise Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United tenure.
From his kamikaze tactics which only served to downplay his squad’s strengths and expose their weaknesses to his poor communication in front of the media, and the odd truly baffling claim which expunged any remaining popularity Erik ten Hag had amongst the Manchester United supporters.
But while Ten Hag’s recruitment also became a stick with which to beat the now-departed Dutchman, is there an argument that Man United’s signings from the summer of 2022 to now are not quite as disastrous as the critics would have you believe.
Yes, the £82 million Antony will forever be an unwitting posterboy for Ten Hag’s failings. Gary Neville ranks Antony as one of Man United’s worst-ever signings, alongside fellow Brazilian Casemiro.
Now, that feels harsh on the latter, and not just because Casemiro was outstanding during United’s EFL Cup thrashing of Leicester City. The size of Casemiro’s transfer fee may have been ludicrous given his age – not to mention the length of his contract – but the former Real Madrid enforcer will always retain a special place in the heart of some supporters on the back of that fabulous debut season.
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For Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs de Ligt and the admittedly underwhelming Joshua Zirkzee, it is too early to judge. Mason Mount should not be considered a flop either. Those relentless injury issues are, simply, unfortunate.
Andre Onana and Lisandro Martinez have had truly terrific moments in United red, Rasmus Hojlund could be their centre-forward for years to come, while Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen and Noussair Mazraoui all represented fine value.
Sofyan Amrabat, Marcel Sabitzer and Wout Weghorst were short-term solutions brought in loan during a period of financial struggle.
So Paul Merson could certainly be accused of going a little overboard. OK, maybe few of Ten Hag’s signings could be considered a genuine nine or ten out of ten. But, also, Antony is arguably the only who realistically deserves the tag of ‘flop’.
“The one thing I would have to say [Ruben Amorim] has to get right – and what Ten Hag got horribly wrong – is the transfer market,” former Arsenal, Aston Villa and Portsmouth midfielder Merson says.
“Off the top of my head, I am trying to think who he brought in who was a major, major success. And that is where the problem lies at Man United. They bought Antony for, like, £80 million! That is a sacking in itself in my opinion.”
Man United told they should have signed Viktor Gyokeres before Sporting Lisbon
Amid reports that Sporting’s star striker Viktor Gyokeres could follow Ruben Amorim to Manchester United, Merson has a few more questions.
Though the former England international does his argument little favours when he raves about Gyokeres’ form for Benfica – he actually plays for their Lisbon neighbours – while suggesting that Amorim, rather than Jason Wilcox or Christoper Vivell, will be in charge of recruitment.
“I hear people talking about Gyokeres coming in, who’s doing great. But why didn’t Man United buy him when he was at Coventry? I know! Because everybody would say; ‘Well, he played for Coventry! What are we buying him for?’,” Merson adds.
“But now he will come to open arms in January or at the end of the season. He is a top player.
“They’ve got to get the market right. I can’t think of two many who have been a massive success who [Ten Hag] has brought in.”
OK, Merson may have a point here. Leading Premier League clubs do not tend to make a habit of plucking players out of the Championship, often preferring to make a move after the man in question proves himself at something of a ‘middle-man’, stepping stone club.
But maybe they should, given that Gyokeres’ price-tag has risen by around £60 million in just two years. The Sweden international moved to Portugal for just £20 million, and now has an £83 million release clause in his contract.
But still, after 59 goals in just 65 appearances under Amorim, the time has surely come for Viktor Gyokeres to join his manager in making a big leap up the footballing ladder.
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