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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
Tyrone Marshall

What Erik ten Hag is like in Manchester United training sessions

Manchester United are only two weeks into their latest new era, but there is already a style of play developing under Erik ten Hag, who has been more hands-on than any recent manager on the training ground.

Ten Hag has taken a lead role since pre-season started on June 27 and the players already feel like they're benefitting from his drills, with the Dutchman not afraid to put a stop to exercises if he feels his instructions aren't being followed.

The 52-year-old is a direct communicator by nature, which when coupled with his simple grasp of English has led to concise and clear instructions on the training ground.

READ MORE: United expect Eriksen to be next transfer amid De Jong and Ronaldo issues

One source described some of his communication in training as "blunt", but the players have taken to his methods and the fact he is so visible, rather than becoming frustrated at his meticulous eye for detail, which has seen some sessions stopped and restarted.

Ten Hag has only had two weeks of training sessions so far and United's internationals only returned to Carrington at the start of last week, but sources have said a style of play is already becoming visible in training.

That includes a devotion to playing out from the back, with the players working on specific drills to build from the back through the entire team, an area Ten Hag has focused on in his first couple of weeks.

Video and pictures released from training have shown Ten Hag at the heart of matters and he is very much a tracksuit coach, leading sessions with help from assistants Mitchell van der Gaag and Steve McClaren and first-team coach Eric Ramsay.

McClaren has been hands-on in training, performing a very difficult role to that of Mike Phelan, who is no longer involved in the first-team set-up but could remain at the club in an ambassadorial position.

Ten Hag has been described as the "conductor" in training sessions, setting out the drills and issuing the instructions, with Van der Gaag, McClaren and Ramsay then getting involved.

After starting pre-season at Carrington, United have been training at the STB Academy in Bangkok since Saturday, a facility around a 20-minute drive from the team hotel in the centre of this sprawling city.

Pre-season tours offer a chance for the group to spend more time with each other, although United are only in Bangkok for four days and the trip is expected to be a lot more relaxed in Melbourne. Dozens of fans are inside and outside the Athenee Hotel throughout the day looking for autographs and pictures.

United have a couple of floors sealed off at the luxury hotel, with a games room set up, although it hasn't been used regularly so far. Ten Hag is keen to use this trip as a bonding exercise as well and while that might become easier once the 31-man squad head to Australia, the Dutchman has insisted that the squad eat all three meals per day together at the hotel in Bangkok.

Melbourne and Perth could be an opportunity for more group bonding, with new signing Tyrell Malacia yet to perform an induction song in front of the squad, although the 22-year-old has been described as a "vibrant and bubbly" presence on the training ground and in the hotel.

Those are words that weren't really applied to Ten Hag during his time in charge of Ajax and he is described as an "intense" presence at training. One source said his focus so far had been "football, football, football", working hard to try and transform a team who stuttered to United's worst-ever Premier League campaign last season.

That is a significant task, but Ten Hag hasn't been afraid to put the work in and he's already making an impact on the players with his approach on the training ground.

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