Erik ten Hag has enjoyed a relatively promising start to life at Manchester United since he replaced Ralf Rangnick over the summer. Prior to his arrival, United were in an uncontrollable downward spiral.
Ten Hag has helped steady the ship and four months into his reign, there are concrete signs of a good team forming. Comparisons to Louis van Gaal, the last Dutch manager at Old Trafford before Ten Hag, are, however, inevitable.
Van Gaal is currently aiming to guide his Netherlands side to world glory in Qatar and following their 3-1 win over the USA in the round of 16, former Reds captain Gary Neville was quizzed on the differences between the two managers.
👀 @GNev2 expertly looks at the strengths of Erik Ten Hag at Manchester United and compares it to the other managers of the post Alex Ferguson era at United. #FIFAWorldCup #Qatar2022 pic.twitter.com/PaOINZO1fx
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS_EN) December 3, 2022
“I do think Ten Hag’s football is very different than Van Gaal’s,” Neville told beIN SPORTS, as seen above. “It is quicker, they play more fast-paced, they have tempo on the ball when they pass. I think some of the movements are really good.
“There are some games where he has to dumb it down because he realises he’s playing against better teams and he comes back. But what he’s done, I think in midfield, with Casemiro, Bruno (Fernandes) and Eriksen, I think he’s got Manchester United playing quickly back through midfield play and looking forward.
“Casemiro and Eriksen are playing passes forward all the time through the lines. Ole was playing counter attack quite a lot, playing deep and going on the counter attack, Mourinho was playing deep and going counter attack, Van Gaal was possession but sometimes without real purpose. It felt like he was playing sideways.
“Ten Hag, his style looks like he’s got a style of both at the moment but there’s a long way to go.”
