Erik ten Hag reveals he urged Man Utd squad to heal fractured relationship with fans as a priority after taking charge

ERIK TEN HAG revealed that he prioritised Manchester United stars making amends with the club’s disgruntled fanbase.

Over the last decade, the club has struggled for the success that fans had become accustomed to under former manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

This has seen fan groups become unhappy with the leadership of the Red Devils all the way up to the boardroom.

The Dutchman however wanted to fix this relationship and thought the players could be key to the reparations.

He told ESPN: “It was definitely one of our plans, part of our plan that we had.

“You need a connection with the fans. Manchester United is that big in the world and you have to show commitment and make an engagement.

“You have to build a togetherness because also, we want to act like that on the pitch as well.

“The team has to understand that and everyone around Manchester United has to understand that the fans are there for us.

“You play football for your fans and we have to be aware of it.”

The former Ajax manager was appointed in the summer and saw a host of new talent join the club.

PLAY OUR DREAM TEAM WORLD CUP FANTASY FOOTBALL GAME TO WIN A SHARE OF £50k

Ten Hag signed Casemiro, Martin Dubravka, Christian Eriksen, Tyrell Malacia, and his old Ajax stars Antony and Lisandro Martinez in a summer spend worth £200million.

The new blood has helped the Red Devils improve this season and they are now challenging for a Champions League spot, despite a poor start to the season.

However, they suffered a blow at the weekend as Aston Villa beat the Old Trafford outfit 3-1 in the Premier League.

On the game, Ten Hag admitted that he was not happy with his side’s performance.

He added: “We were not happy with our performance at Villa Park and we make it quite clear in our analysis that it’s not acceptable, it’s never acceptable.

“We have to deliver in every game and that is the culture we have to have here.

“We can’t change it [the defeat to Aston Villa] but we want a reaction.”

Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk