Erik ten Hag makes subtle Man United change this season, Mikel Arteta and Gareth Southgate have already done it

Erik ten Hag has made a subtle change at Manchester United this season that both Mikel Arteta and Gareth Southgate implemented for their respective sides.

The Reds have had a mixed start to the season, winning their opening game against Fulham but losing their second match to Brighton.

There have been both positives and negatives for Erik ten Hag’s side, but the potential impact of substitutes has been a notable highlight.

Joshua Zirkzee and Alejandro Garnacho combined to score the winning goal against Fulham last week after both players were brought on by ten Hag in the second half.

Despite the defeat against Brighton, Garnacho once again made a positive impact off the bench and appeared to have scored a goal to give United the lead.

Although that goal was disallowed due to a controversial offside involving Zirkzee, it still showed that United have game-changers who can make a difference when coming off the bench.

Before the match on Saturday, ten Hag was asked why he decided against starting Zirkzee or Matthijs de Ligt.

Interestingly, he told TNT Sports that the players coming off the bench can be just as important as those in the starting lineup. Instead of calling them substitutes, he referred to them as “finishers.”

He said: “We won last week, but subs are very important. You have starters, and you have finishers.”

The United boss reiterated this message to club media, highlighting a tactic we’ve seen used by several managers in recent years.

During last season, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta renamed his substitutes as ‘impactors’ in an attempt to boost moral in the squad.

The Spanish manager did this to keep all of his players motivated and feeling like part of the team after a conversation with former England rugby head coach Eddie Jones.

It makes sense because many players are unhappy when left out, and Ten Hag is clearly aiming to highlight their potential importance to the team.

Former England manager Gareth Southgate used the same tactic during England’s Euro 2024 journey, where the likes of Ollie Watkins and Cole Palmer made notable impacts off the bench.

He also used the word ‘finishers’ and Crystal Palace midfielder Eberechi Eze explained the way that it aids the mentality of the players on the bench.

“The manager spoke about ‘finishers’. We call them finishers, we know that,” he said in the summer.

“The players that come on to the pitch, there is a mentality about it, there’s a way to go about it. “

Ten Hag will be hoping this has a positive impact on his team going forward for the rest of the season, but as the result against Brighton shown, they also need to improve a lot of other things.

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