Erik ten Hag’s second season at the club has been quite the comedown from the excitement and optimism that came with his maiden campaign at Old Trafford.
In his first season, Ten Hag seemed to have repaired what was a broken side to guide them back into the Champions League, as well as end the club’s six-year wait for silverware.
Optimism was high going into his second term but on the pitch, United have endured one of their most difficult campaigns in modern history.
With roughly a month to go of the season, the Reds are adrift of the Champions League places and there is a new public feud every other week.
Injuries have ravaged the season and the players Ten Hag relied on most last year have regressed substantially, leading to question marks over their futures.
Christian Eriksen, a key player last year, has been restricted to a bit-part player and the Danish international has spoken out ahead of this weekend’s FA Cup semi-final against Coventry City.
The former Tottenham Hotspur star commented on the poor season, insisting the players will not hide and will do everything to salvage whatever they can, starting with the FA Cup.
“We’re definitely going to aim as high as possible,” Eriksen is quoted as saying by the official Manchester United website.
“We’re not going to hide from the season we have had. A lot of ups and downs.
“Hopefully now, with more than a month to go, we are going to finish strongly and exactly, get ourselves in a good position to at least have a chance of getting in the Champions League and obviously going all in there for the FA Cup final.”
Victory over the Championship side would see United make it into the FA Cup final for the second year running but Ten Hag will be desperate for a different outcome.
The Reds fell to their cross-city rivals in last year’s final and there could be a repeat of that final depending on how the other semi-final between Chelsea and Manchester City plays out.
Talk is cheap.