The Erik ten Hag era is officially up and running.
The new Manchester United manager met a number of his players and took training for the first time on Monday, signalling the start of the club's pre-season preparations. Ten Hag arrived at the club's Carrington training ground at around 8am and is understood to have taken his players out onto the training pitches in the afternoon for more than two hours.
It is understood that almost 30 players participated in the session, allowing Ten Hag the opportunity to get to know some of his new colleagues and cast a watchful eye over them. Ten Hag was joined on the training pitches by new assistants Mitchell van der Gaag and Steve McClaren.
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Although some members of the squad are still away on holiday after representing their respective countries earlier this month, several household names attended the first day of pre-season, such as David de Gea, Donny van de Beek, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho. A handful of youngsters also participated in the session, including Alejandro Garnacho, who reported back to Carrington ahead of schedule.
But what exactly happened in Ten Hag's first training session as United manager? Below, MEN Sport has picked out five things that we spotted.
The introduction
Ask any football manager in the world what the most important aspect of a first training session at a new club is and the chances are they will give you the exact same answer. Ten Hag's first task was getting his players together in a huddle to no doubt run over just some of the things that he is going to expect of them over the course of this pre-season campaign.
As well as using the opportunity to dish out some instructions and inform his players of his plans, it is quite possible that the Dutchman will have used the opportunity to get to know some of his players. Ten Hag will be looking to develop his knowledge every day between now and the start of the season.
What was specifically said during that conversation will, of course, remain a secret. However, according to club sources, it went on for "several minutes."
McClaren gets stuck in
Joining Ten Hag on the Carrington pitches was new assistant manager McClaren. The former England manager is no stranger to Ten Hag, working with the Dutchman at FC Twente just over a decade ago.
McClaren, of course, is also no stranger to Carrington, working at United for two years between 1999 and 2001 under Sir Alex Ferguson. It may have felt like a homecoming for him.
Regardless of that, the 61-year-old wasted little time in making himself familiar to the squad, getting involved in the thick of the training session. He was pictured watching the players doing some ball work with a whistle in hand, suggesting that he will play a key part in the make-up of Ten Hag's training sessions.
All smiles
Following the disaster of last season, United's players will be determined to make amends this campaign. Last term was by no means good enough and everyone connected with the club was glad to see the back of it.
The beginning of a new season and Ten Hag's arrival has resulted in the slate being wiped clean for everyone, ahead of, hopefully, happier times being right around the corner. And it appeared as though that was the approach United's players were adopting on Monday.
Several players, including Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Alvaro Fernandez, Anthony Martial, Sancho and Garnacho, were all spotted with huge smiles on their faces. It appeared as though they were delighted to be back and all appeared to be in good spirits.
Youngsters involved
If Ten Hag's tenure at Ajax taught us anything, it's that he is not afraid to put his trust in young players. Countless youngsters were awarded opportunities under him in Amsterdam and he has wasted little time in replicating the theme here in England.
No shortage of youngsters participated in his maiden United training session, with several members of the under-21s and other age groups joining the likes of De Gea, Sancho and Rashford in trying to catch the new manager's attention. Among those involved were goalkeepers Matej Kovar and Nathan Bishop, defenders Ethan Laird, Bjorn Hardley, Will Fish and Fernandez, midfielders Charlie Savage, Zidane Iqbal, Charlie Wellens and Ethan Galbraith, and attackers Tahith Chong, Shola Shoretire, Noam Emeran and Garnacho.
The importance of so many youngsters being invited to participate in Ten Hag's first training session cannot be underestimated. It will do wonders for their confidence and morale, no doubt resulting in better performances on the training ground. Some will fancy their chances of being selected to go on the pre-season tour.
Fernandez's new shirt number hint
A new season often brings new shirt numbers - and that appears to potentially be the case for young left-back Fernandez. The Spaniard was spotted donning a training shirt with No.42 on it.
Last term, the attack-minded full-back wore No.74, suggesting that he could be in line to be beefed up the order in the squad. However, it is worth remembering that squad numbers worn in pre-season can differ to the ones worn at the start of the season, once clubs are required to publish their squad number lists.
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- What Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag did on his first day at Carrington
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