Dispelling the biggest myth about Manchester United and Erik ten Hag in 2022/23

Despite vastly overachieving in his debut season at Manchester United, there is one myth that continues to be spread about Erik ten Hag’s time at Old Trafford so far.

The Red Devils finished third in the 2022/23 Premier League campaign – securing Champions League football for next term – following United’s worst points total since the competition was restructured in 1992.

Ten Hag also secured United their first trophy since the 2017 Europa League when his side beat Newcastle at Wembley to win the Carabao Cup. An FA Cup Final against Manchester City awaits for the chance to win a domestic cup double.

There have been great improvements in the team structure, especially how they defend as a unit, as well as individual resurgences from the likes of Marcus Rashford and Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

However, whether it be from certain United fans themselves or supporters of clubs elsewhere, there continues to be one stick to beat Ten Hag with that just doesn’t make sense.

The argument that comes about is always to do with the amount of money spent in his first transfer window with the club, Ten Hag recruited five players on full contracts for a total of £213 million. The Dutchman’s recent comments about the lack of investment in the January window has exasperated the reaction.

However, it seems that context is lost when discussing the summer transfer window for United. Many seem to think that Ten Hag added £200 million worth of talent into a world class squad – and not one that finished sixth in the Premier League and looked completely depleted as a unit.

Adding to that, United had released five first-team players after the 2021/22 campaign, including Paul Pogba, Edinson Cavani and Nemanja Matic. The club would’ve had a huge gap on their wage bill created with those departures, but there was a desperate need to replace them.

Tyrell Malacia came in to replace the on-loan Alex Telles, who is likely to have played his last game at Old Trafford, whilst Christian Eriksen and Casemiro came into a midfield engine room that consisted of just two first-team players – Fred and Scott McTominay. Antony finally came into fill a position on the right-wing that has been absent of quality for several years.

So it’s perplexing that some would use the money spent in the summer against the United manager – those additions were the bare minimum needed at the club.

Whilst it is a fair argument to say that United as a whole need to improve their ability to sell players by choosing the right time to let go and not give out extraordinary contracts, but that is not something that should be placed at the door of the manager who came into the club less than a year ago.

Ultimately, being at Manchester United has its perks – Ten Hag has regularly spoke about the amazing support from the global fanbase – but also its negatives.

The media focus on the United manager and his team is wider than any other team in the league. An interrogation from Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville after just two games was Ten Hag’s first experience of that. Meanwhile, his first-season spending is often spoken about more than 12th-place Chelsea’s £500+ million.

It’s part and parcel of the job for Ten Hag, who has had the goalposts move for himself after exceeded expectations this term.