– Last year I went on the water. This year I am the worst coach in the Premier League

– Football experts in England want to meet. They want to show they are worth the money, so Manchester United becomes an easy target. It is the biggest club in England and perhaps the biggest in the world. The club can either be loved or hated, there is nothing in between.

This is what Erik ten Hag says in a larger interview with him International footballthe oldest football magazine in the Netherlands.

There, Ten Hag talks about everything from the upcoming FA Cup final to injury problems and a difficult 2023/24 season.

Then he faces the football experts in England. There is no doubt that he gets what is said and written.

– When things get bad, they start talking and then everyone uses very big words. All this negativity from these so-called experts who cannot analyze with facts, but prefer to attack others to highlight themselves, says Ten Hag, and continues:

– The same people patted me on the back last year. Last year I went on the water. This year I am the worst coach in the Premier League.

He claims he is wanted

The interview was published on Saturday morning, just hours before it arrived at Wembley: Manchester United meet rivals Manchester City in the FA Cup final, a match that could salvage at least part of United's season. However, shipping wasn't ideal for Ten Hag:

On Friday, reports came from The Guardian that Manchester United had decided to offload the Dutch coach. Later that evening there were leaks regarding the lineup.

Manchester United themselves must be clear that no decision has been made regarding Ten Hag, and whether the team and Ten Hag themselves have been affected by the news of the last 24 hours is not good to say. Ten Hag himself claims that INEOS informed him that he was wanted.

– They (INEOS) said that they want to change everything and that they want to rebuild the club with me. They told me directly, says Ten Hag.

– Far from reality

However, he realizes that things have not been good enough lately.

– Let me be clear: it was bad. It was crap. But after all that, we will be playing the FA Cup final, says Ten Hag about the season.

It is believed that there are unrealistic expectations attached to Manchester United.

– Manchester United last won the league in 2013. It's been 11 years. However, they expect us to win every game and fight at the top. The club is not ready for this. The idea was that we should start building something, and we took the first steps last year. But then you realize how big the club really is, and that some people are never satisfied, says Ten Hag.

– Inside the club, people were happy, but outside there was noise that I “only” won the League Cup and lost the FA Cup final and finished third. So you are out of touch with reality. The other Cubs had a much better booth.

The issue continues under the ingredients article.

However, Ten Hag believes things will be different now.

– INEOS is going to shake things up, and some projects are already underway. Carrington would be destroyed and a new training facility would come.

Furthermore, Ten Hag talks about the changes he wants in the stable.

-We have to sign an additional striker this summer. If we can also sign a midfielder and a replacement for (Raphael) Varane, things will look good again. If the players remain injury free, we can try to target the top four again.