Never before in the Premier League era had Manchester United lost three of their opening five games and yet have to steel themselves to face a daunting task to open their Champions League campaign away to Bayern Munich.
United boss Erik ten Hag is no doubt already feeling the heat from fans frustrated with the Red Devils after an ominous start to the season has dashed hopes of Premier League glory this season. Ten Hag had been fortunate in having been sheltered from criticism earlier weeks of the campaign as fans’ anger was directed insteads towards a series of off-field issues – chief among which is the the Glazer family appearing to have put a process to sell the club on hold.
Other issues that have cropped up include Brazilian winger Antony’s having been been given a forced leave of absence to fight domestic abuse allegations made by his ex-girlfriend. There is also the issue of United deciding that Mason Greenwood having to leave Old Trafford for good last month despite abuse charges against the 21-year-old having been dropped.
Adding to United’s woes is also recalcitrant winger Jadon Sancho’s absence from first-team action due to a public spat with his manager.
All this has not worked out well for Ten Hag who – despite being credited for returning United to the Champions League by finishing third in the Premier League last season and ending the club’s six-year trophy drought by winning the League Cup – became the target for a chorus of boos after incurring the supporters’ wrath for substituting new signing Rasmus Hojlund midway through the second-half of Saturday’s 3-1 home defeat to Brighton.
Looking ahead, United could be too wishful placing any bets on the 20-year-old Dane saving the day in their forthcoming UCL match against Bayern Munich as all their hopes could well be quickly undone by former Tottenham talisman Harry Kane in Germany. Kane has brilliantly hit the ground running with four goals in as many starts, while Hojlund is yet glaringly goalless for United.
The pressure is clearly piling up on Ten Hag to lift the mood around the club with a quick upturn in results on the pitch as the club are already trailing bitter rivals Manchester City by nine points in the Premier League. Hence making an immediate impact on the upcoming Champions League match would definitely impact the success or failure of Ten Hag’s second season.
“It’s about character,” said Ten Hag, ahead of his return to Munich, where he coached the Bayern B team between 2013 and 2015.
“Now we have to see how strong we are, how the team sticks together and which players are standing up and showing the character and leading the team.”