Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is under no pressure to lead the team to a top-four finish next season, with head of football operations Jim Ratcliffe prioritising significant development of the squad and aiming to establish sustained excellence there.
Ten Hag’s ambition is to take United as high as possible and Ratcliffe’s Ineos-run football department wants to do the same, but there is an awareness that there are no guarantees next season as the club is rebuilding and that continued success will be achieved by establishing solid foundations. Working with sporting director Dan Ashworth, ten Hag’s remit will be to significantly improve on-field performances and standards off the field. After United finished eighth last year, their lowest finish in the Premier League era, it is recognised that every area of football policy needs to be re-examined.
Lenny Yolo and Joshua Zirkzee have been acquired, and ten Hag and Ashworth are also targeting a defensive-minded midfielder – Paris Saint-Germain’s Manuel Ugarte is being rated – and a full-back, with Bayern Munich’s Nosair Mazraoui among the options.
Off the field, Ratcliffe has approved a £50 million upgrade to the club’s Carrington training facility which could take until the end of next season to be completed. This will improve facilities for the men’s, women’s and academy teams but has controversially forced the women’s team to temporarily operate from a portable building.
More than 60 injuries, which significantly affected the team’s performance last season, will also be evaluated, and ten Hag wants to shorten the pre-season to ensure players are better rested. Last summer, United traveled 15,236 miles to play eight games, visiting Oslo, Edinburgh, New Jersey, San Diego, Houston and Las Vegas. This year, six games, including the Community Shield against Manchester City on August 10, will travel 13,614 miles to Trondheim, Edinburgh, Los Angeles, San Diego and South Carolina.
On Wednesday, Ten Hag’s side flew out to Los Angeles to take on Arsenal at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on Saturday. The following Wednesday, United head a little further down the West Coast to take on Real Betis at San Diego’s Snapdragon Stadium before flying to South Carolina for the final game of their US tour to face Liverpool at Columbia’s Williams-Brice Stadium.
