Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
Jack Flintham

Erik ten Hag is using a method that brought Sir Alex Ferguson success at Manchester United

Erik ten Hag looks to be following Sir Alex Ferguson's approach at Manchester United.

Ferguson retired in 2013 as the club's most decorated boss having won 13 Premier League titles, two Champions Leagues, five FA Cups, four League Cups and a Club World Cup. His management style was known for being strict and occasionally abrasive.

It is well known that Ferguson would resort to the so-called 'hairdryer treatment' in order to maintain discipline among his squad and this approach clearly paid off. Ex-United assistant manager Archie Knox worked alongside Ferguson in the mid-80s to early 90s and he has explained the man-management style the pair employed.

ALSO READ: Ten Hag impressed United players on tour

" Alex always said that in our case it was ‘two bad cops'," Knox told The Telegraph. "If Alex gave them stick I certainly wouldn’t be putting an arm on their shoulder.

"If you lay the ground rules from the start, the players respond. We would train at 10.30am in the winter and if anyone was late they had the penalty of a few laps around the training field.

"You would hear the cars screeching into the car park just before we started. But I never had a problem with any of those players."

Ten Hag looks to be adopting a similar method at Old Trafford. Fernandes is just one of the players who has explained that there are rules the players have to follow to remain in the team.

Meanwhile, during matches, Ten Hag has shown that he will not settle for any less than the best. During United's victory over Crystal Palace, he was heard berating the team via the pitchside mics.

READ NEXT:

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.