ERIK ten Hag’s job is still on the line ahead of Sunday’s clash at Aston Villa despite the last-gasp 3-3 draw at Porto on Thursday night.
As stirring as Harry Maguire’s last-gasp rescue was for the 10-man Red Devils at Porto, a crazy 3-3 draw revealed more shocking failings.
The Europa League thriller means no Premier League club has let in three or more goals more often in all competitions than Ten Hag’s men since he took charge at Old Trafford in April 2022.
United now visit Aston Villa – buoyant after toppling Bayern Munich in the Champions League – for a make-or-break Prem clash on Sunday.
And there will be extra pressure on the Dutchman this Sunday as United chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe will be watching from the stands for the Red Devils’ visit to Villa Park.
But despite another night of dodgy defending, Ten Hag insisted he will not only survive but thrive for the long haul.
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The Dutchman said: “We will get there. Don’t judge us in this moment, judge us at the end of the season.
“We are in the process, we will improve. We have two seasons now where we achieve finals – just wait.
However, he did add: “You see again that the team is willing, strong character, but the middle part, the defending we have to improve.
“We have to be better on the ball and defend better.”
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United, free-flowing early on, were deservedly 2-0 up through Marcus Rashford and Rasmus Hojlund, although Porto keeper Diogo Costa blundered for both goals.
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But goals from Pepe and Samu Omorodion put the Portuguese giants level.
Ten Hag took off the flying Rashford for the second period – raising eyebrows by revealing it was purely to rest the striker for the weekend rather than any injury.
Spanish forward Omorodion promptly cracked the home side in front.
And Porto could easily have exposed more gaps at the back for United – before Ten Hag made another bold decision.
Off went central defenders Lisandro Martinez and Matthijs De Ligt, with Maguire and Jonny Evans coming on in a like-for-like gamble.
Almost immediately, however, the Red Devils’ star midfielder Bruno Fernandes saw red for the second game in a row, courtesy of a controversial second yellow card late on.
Fortunately, Maguire thumped home a point-saving header in stoppage time.
Maguire, who was left out of the England squad yesterday, responded to the snub by nodding home in the closing stages of the dramatic draw.
When asked if United’s players believe in Ten Hag, Maguire replied: “Yeah definitely. I’ve played for this club for six years and I know how it works.
“When you go through a bad spell, players come under pressure but also the manager does.
“He’s experienced enough that he’s learned how to deal with it. It’s part and parcel of the privilege you have playing for or managing this club.”
United are now languishing in 21st place in the Europa League table.
Maguire added: “When you go 2-0 up away from home in a place like this you’ve got to be a little bit more solid and secure.
“There were far too many gaps and a lot of crosses coming in. In the first half they ultimately punished us. We played really well with the ball in the first half but really poorly without it.
“It’s something of a mental issue that we’ve got to overcome. It probably starts with belief. When we go 2-0 up and then concede, does the belief go a little bit?
“We need to be aware of it and make sure that when we concede we regroup and stick together. We’ve got to do that better.
“The boys on the pitch have got to realise that it’s happened far too many times. If we want to be successful this season, we can’t concede as often as we have done this season.”
Ten Hag took goalscorer Rashford off at half-time for Alejandro Garnacho and claimed: “We have to rotate. Garnacho, we didn’t start him, but he had a great game not only Sunday but the whole season.
“We go quickly with a turnaround to Villa and they have had a day longer to recover and we have an away game.”
United have now conceded at least three goals in their last four European away days, with just one victory in their past 10 Euro ties.
That’s four given away at Bayern, then four, three and three against FC Copenhagen, Galatasaray and Porto respectively.
Surely no team can challenge for a trophy with such forlorn facts ‘n figures.
And if you look at the bigger picture – all competitions – the Red Devils also lead the leakers amongst Prem sides.
United have surrendered two or more goals 31 times since the start of last season.
That’s yet another unwanted tally for which United top the table.
No wonder they will travel to Unai Emery’s high-flying Villa with the heat around Ten Hag really starting to prickle.
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The Red Devils sit just 13th, with just two wins from six games.
That matches their worst-ever Prem start to a campaign and leaves fans fearing the pain might deepen before it is eased – unless Ten Hag finds a quick solution that could also the key to his own future.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
