ERIK TEN HAG has torn into Andy Carroll for his reckless challenge that KO’d Christian Eriksen for at least three months.
The Manchester United boss said the Reading striker’s actions did not belong on a football pitch.
And asked if the former Newcastle and Liverpool player deliberately set out to hurt his United stars, as he later ended up with a red card, Ten Hag was not letting him off the hook.
Ten Hag said: “I think it was quite clear what my thoughts were.”
Carroll scythed down Eriksen with a reckless challenge early in the second-half of United’s 3-1 FA Cup fourth-round victory over Reading on Saturday.
While he escaped punishment for that, Carroll would receive yellow cards and a subsequent red for fouls soon after on Tyrell Malacia and then Casemiro.
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Ten Hag said: “I think football has to set restrictions that protect the players.
“What football wants is the best players to be available on the pitch.
“This is a tackle — and the two tackles after it — that don’t belong on a pitch, because there is a high risk of injuring your colleague.
“So it’s worse and I’m left wondering about that.”
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The Red Devils boss added that he was still mystified how Jean-Philippe Mateta of Crystal Palace was not booked for an elbow on Lisandro Martinez in United’s recent trip to Selhurst Park.
He said: “I’m also wondering more, when we were at Palace, when there was an elbow on Lisandro Martinez.
“I don’t believe there was even a whistle for a free-kick and I’m wondering about such things, because it’s a risk of injury for the player.”
Eriksen injured an ankle as he was felled by Carroll and United have confirmed he will not be available until at least the end of April and maybe into the last month of the season, May.
It is a major blow for Ten Hag to lose the in-form Danish playmaker particularly with Donny van de Beek out for the rest of the season and Scott McTominay sidelined for over a fortnight with a muscle problem.
This is a tackle — and the two tackles after it — that don’t belong on a pitch, because there is a high risk of injuring your colleague.
Erik ten Hag
Which is why he had a late deadline day scramble to get Bayern Munich’s Marcel Sabitzer.
Earlier in the day Ten Hag explained the reasons for needing 28-year-old Austrian international midfielder Sabitzer.
He said: “You can set the squad up but then in January, Donny is out for the rest of the season and Christian for part of the season and also Scott McTominay is not available for a week, two weeks, even longer. So we have a challenge there. We have quality players there, that is obvious, but the depth is not there anymore.”
Ten Hag knows Fred can make an impact in Eriksen’s place and has faith his combination with Casemiro that works so well for Brazil can also do the trick for United.
He said: “Fred’s playing together with Casemiro in the Brazil squad, that’s not the worst squad in the world.
“They have so many choices they can make, but they play together and that tells you something about the quality Fred has.”
They could pair up tonight in United’s Carabao Cup semi-final second leg against Nottingham Forest.
Despite a 3-0 advantage from the first leg at the City Ground, Ten Hag insists he is still going to field a strong side to ensure the momentum gathered from a run of 11 wins, one draw and one defeat in the last 13 games is maintained.
He said: “We have a perfect chance to go to Wembley and therefore we have to focus. It will be a strong team.
“We have momentum and want to keep the process going.
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“Nottingham Forest are a good team they have real good depth in their squad, they can do things differently and we have to be prepared for that.”
MANCHESTER UNITED (likely): De Gea, Wan Bissaka, Maguire, Lindelof, Malacia, Fred, Casemiro, Antony, Fernandes, Rashford, Weghorst.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
