Erik ten Hag's start to life at Manchester United has been "killed" already by the club's board, insists Dutch football legend Marco van Basten.
The former Ajax and AC Milan striker feels United's "idiotic" pre-season activity has left Ten Hag playing catch-up in his new role with the pressure already mounting on their new manager. United spent two-and-a-half weeks on tour in Thailand and Australia during pre-season, featuring in four friendly fixtures - three of which were against Premier League sides, including Liverpool.
United then played in another fixture in Norway against Atletico Madrid before their final match of pre-season the following day, the 1-1 draw with Rayo Vallecano at Old Trafford. And Van Basten is adamant the hectic schedule and travelling has proved costly to Ten Hag and his players.
‘"What I find strange is that every year in preparation they make a kind of world tour," Van Basten told Dutch broadcaster Ziggo Sport. "That kills the group. It’s ridiculous, idiotic. They have to stop doing that. Physically, it’s just heartbreakingly bad.
"They do everything they can to make more money, but it’s nonsense."
Cristiano Ronaldo did not join up with United whilst they were overseas due to family reasons, only returning to training once the squad was back in the UK at Carrington. United's schedule also meant it was not possible for new signings Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez to get to work immediately as they waited over a week until the squad returned from Australia.
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United's far-flung tour commitments have been an issue in the past, with former boss Louis van Gaal lamenting back in 2014: "We have to prepare for the season and when you have commercial activities and dreadful distances, having to fly a lot and the jet lag, it is not very positive for a good preparation."
United have since lost both of their opening Premier League fixtures in damning fashion, falling 2-1 to Brighton on home soil before the 4-0 capitulation at Brentford at the weekend. Ten Hag was already facing a big task to get his plans in order ahead of the new campaign having only been announced as the club's new boss at the end of April.
The summer has seen United take a frantic and largely failed approach in the transfer market, with the Frenkie de Jong saga overshadowing Ten Hag's opening weeks in the job. Their latest bid to sign Adrien Rabiot from Juventus has now collapsed due to his wage demands, with only around a fortnight remaining before the deadline for United to bring in new recruits.
Perhaps what's more worrying for Ten Hag is the impending visit of rivals Liverpool with his United side clearly off the pace. The former Ajax coach called United's players in for extra training on Sunday after the embarrassing defeat to Brentford, where stats showed United's players ran 13 kilometres less than their opponents.
Speaking in the immediate aftermath of the game, Ten Hag admitted: "[It was] a really poor performance. You start the game and you have to be ready, and we weren’t, and that’s disappointing. It’s difficult for me.
“It's a surprise when you start the game like this; in 35 minutes conceding four goals. It’s not possible. So, the team has to take responsibility. I feel really sorry for the fans. They give everything to support us and we let them down.”
