Erik ten Hag explains the two changes he’s made at Manchester United after win over Man City

Manchester United’s most significant result of the season came to fruition on Saturday afternoon as they defeated Manchester City 2-1 in the Premier League.

The Old Trafford fixture saw Marcus Rashford and Bruno Fernandes sink Manchester City with two late goals after Jack Grealish opened the scoring on the hour mark for the reigning Premier League champions.

After an opening 45 minutes which saw both sides at a tactical stalemate, Pep Guardiola’s side dominated the proceedings during the initial phase of the second half, resulting in their opening goal.

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What made the difference in Manchester United’s performance in the end was not tactics, but their mentality and resilience – two aspects of the squad which Erik ten Hag has highlighted as key changes that all managers need to make when taking a new role.

“People talk about tactics but one of the most important things a manager changes is mentality and resilience,” Ten Hag explained after the match. “One moment can change a game and we are much better dealing with that than a few months ago, set backs, suffering.”

One example of this being on display today is Marcus Rashford, who pushed through a hip injury late in the first half to score the eventual winner for the Red Devils.

“You have to be resilient, you get kicked, it hurts but you have to keep going. Fight and deal with the painful moment. That is what he (Rashford) did today and he and the team got rewarded. In top football you have to suffer,” Ten Hag told BT Sport.

Ten Hag also explained that although this result is huge for the club and signifies that they are heading in the right direction, work still needs to be done and there is a lot of time left in the season.

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“We are in the right direction, but it’s January,” he said. “We need to improve and I think there are still many aspects in our game we can do better.”

However, even the Dutchman took a second to appreciate just how brilliant the result is and just how much of an impact the fans had on the result.

“This is why I came to Manchester United. This club is a monster. Old Trafford is a stadium with the right vibe, if you manage to light the fire, you get an amazing experience.”