Paul Scholes SLAMS Erik ten Hag tactics for ‘ruining’ Manchester United’s recruitment process

Paul Scholes has slammed Erik ten Hag for making Manchester United’s recruitment process much harder through his tactical decision-making.

Erik ten Hag is under increasing pressure as Manchester United’s manager following a third Premier League defeat in just six games this season.

The team sits 12th in the league table, and a disappointing home draw against FC Twente in the Europa League has only heightened fan unrest, with many now demanding the Dutchman’s departure.

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The subsequent 3-0 defeat to Tottenham and 3-3 draw against FC Porto have been particularly damaging. Aside from the embarrassment of a heavy loss at Old Trafford, the team Ten Hag fielded have appeared disorganised and chaotic despite featuring eight of his own signings.

United have spent over £600 million since Ten Hag joined the club in 2022, and Paul Scholes, the former United player, has slammed the Dutch manager for effectively ruining the club’s recruitment process by providing an ambiguous style of play.

“The manager makes recruitment difficult because we don’t know how they want to play,” he told MailSport. “Recruiting players for a style of play you know nothing about becomes virtually impossible. 

“They had [Rasmus] Højlund – a very young centre forward who has been injured. It could take another 12 months to get the best out of him.

“There was good potential last year. (Joshua) Zirkzee came from nowhere – not many people had seen him or heard of him when other strikers were available.

“The numbers that were quoted to most teams for Ivan Toney were ridiculous, which is probably why he didn’t go to Chelsea or Arsenal and ended up in Saudi Arabia. 

“The big ones are a couple of years ago when you could have signed Harry Kane or Declan Rice. They might have cost £100 million each, but you know their qualities and character, their belief in the dressing room and on the football pitch, would have been better than going and spending £200 million on four or five players that you’re not quite sure about.

“I’m not sure what market United are in anymore. They’re still the biggest club in the world and people will want to sign for them, but not as much as they would have wanted to in a time gone by.”

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