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Manchester United legend Jaap Stam has urged Erik ten Hag to part ways with the club as he argued against the Dutch coach’s claim that his side play good football
Ten Hag had a successful first season at United following his appointment from Ajax in 2022. He ended the club’s six-year trophy drought by leading them to a Carabao Cup triumph.
However, the 54-year-old was unable to build on the success he managed in his maiden term in England, as United endured a very underwhelming and disappointing 2023/24 campaign. The Red Devils finished in eighth position in the Premier League, their worst-ever finish since 1989/90.
There was some light at the end of the tunnel for Ten Hag and his players, as they beat Manchester City at Wembley to lift the FA Cup.
The FA Cup victory ultimately saved Ten Hag from what seemed like a certain sack by Sir Jim Ratcliffe. After weeks of an end-of-season review, club bosses elected to extend Ten Hag’s contract until 2026 in an effort to give him more time to turn the situation around at Old Trafford.
On the eve of United’s opening Premier League clash against Fulham, Stam spoke to Simon Jordan on his William Hill podcast ‘Up Front with Simon Jordan’ and insisted that he is still not convinced by Ten Hag, who needs to exit United.
The 1999 treble winner told Jordan (via The Daily Mail), “For Ten Hag, it’s his third season at United – I think he needs to go. I think it’s good he signed a new contract because he still needs that little bit of help.”
“He needs to look at himself and how last season panned out, I don’t always agree with him in terms of him saying they played good football.”
“I understand that as a manager you need to be positive about your players and help them out by taking some of the pressure away. That said, it’s also good to just be honest as a manager and say that your team played rubbish football.”
“He needs to step up this season, there have been a lot of changes made at the club with the staff so I’m curious how it’s going to work out for them.”
Stam pointed out that it’s no surprise that two Dutch tacticians currently hold jobs at two of England’s biggest foot clubs – Ten Hag at United and Arne Slot at Liverpool.
According to Stam, the pair’s record in the Netherlands at Ajax and Feyenoord is evidence of their credentials.
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