Erik ten Hag insisted Manchester United need players who are “hungry to fight for the badge” to bring tangible success back to Old Trafford and dismissed the idea that he is too strict as a manager.
£73m winger Jadon Sancho called himself a “scapegoat” back in September when he was left out of the Red Devils’ squad to face Arsenal in September, with Ten Hag revealing he had dropped him for poor performances in training. Sancho described the comments as “completely untrue” on social media and was frozen out of the squad as a result, refusing to apologise to the Dutch manager.
He has since returned to Germany on loan with former club Borussia Dortmund after an underwhelming spell in Manchester.
Speaking ahead of Man Utd‘s Premier League clash with Tottenham on Sunday, Ten Hag claimed he is not a big disciplinarian, instead asserting that he needs players ready to put the club ahead of themselves.
He said: “It’s not about discipline. It’s about normal behaviour. That is what you can expect from a top professional.
“If you want to perform you need hungry players. You need players with personalities and who are hungry to fight for the badge and fight for this club. And they need to do this in a team.”
Sancho made a successful start to his second spell with Dortmund on Saturday, grabbing an assist in their 3-0 win over Darmstadt before claiming he wants to be “happy again” following his Old Trafford exit.
Cristiano Ronaldo was also shown the exit door late in 2022 after revealing he didn’t respect Ten Hag and is now playing in Saudi Arabia. The Portuguese forward had asked to leave the club earlier that year.
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