Eric ten Hag: - My experience says that energy is conserved during many matches and tournaments

– My experience from Ajax is that when we got out of Europe, the quality and level of the players went down. When you participate in tournaments, it gives you energy and I have great faith that the team can handle the demands [til å kjempe på flere fronter]. So far we’ve managed it well, and I think we can do that until the end of the season as well.

– Mentally the team is very ambitious, it gives a nice energy to the whole group of players. Secondly, we have the type of players who can handle physical stress. Players, of course, must first take responsibility for it. They need to take responsibility for their performance, but at the moment I can’t see any signs [på at et fall i nivå]. We won a championship and a cup, but there is still a long way to go in the season.

– It’s too early to think yet [på kvadruppel] We only take one match at a time.

Quality when available

Anthony Martial was also a topic in the closed section of the press conference. The Frenchman has also struggled with major injury problems this season and celebrated Sunday’s final victory over Newcastle by posting a picture of the medical device on social media.

Ten Hag is now giving an update on when we can expect to see United’s number nine playing again.

The hope is to get him back before the international matches at the end of March, but I won’t give the exact time or expect that to happen. Let him do the work required to return. He has now returned several times only to suffer a relapse soon after.

When it is available, it is a good option. We’ll give him more time this time, then we’ll see when he comes back. It is a quality option for the rest of the season.

Back in March?: Martial has not played on the field since the match against Nottingham on February 1. Ten Hag hopes the Frenchman will now return healthy, because then he will become a man of interest at the end of the season.

Also read: Unconfirmed against West Ham

Also read: The first goalkeeper out against United

– It’s too early to make a decision

The press corps also wanted an answer as to whether United and Ten Hag wanted to sign Marcel Sabitzer and Woot Wieghurst on permanent deals.

It’s still too early to make any decision on that. Firstly, we are in the season and this is where our focus needs to be. We can’t have any distractions and think about the things that are going to happen next season. Full focus on the season we are in.