Erik ten Hag says United a "long way away" from winning the Premier League

The boss has also spoken to a Dutch newspaper about Jadon Sancho

Author: Seb CheerPublished 21st Jul 2024

Erik ten Hag says Manchester United are a "Long way away" from winning the Premier League.

The boss has been speaking to a Dutch newspaper, saying he thinks the standards at Old Trafford still need to improve.

He also agreed with former interim manager Ralf Rangnick that "attitude and energy" had to change.

Before leaving United, the current Austria boss said the club needed open-heart surgery.

Ten Hag agreed, speaking to AD Sportwereld.

"Rangnick was absolutely right. We've been working very hard on that for two years, but he said it just right," Ten Hag said, having won the Carabao Cup and FA Cup during his two seasons in charge amid intense spectulation over his job.

"Our standards still need to go up.

"I knew when I started that it was going to be a tough job. There are a lot of people who have advised me. Louis van Gaal too.

"We want this club back to where it was more than a decade ago, to a club that wins the Premier League, which can win Champions Leagues. We are really a long way away from that, I think.

"I think we've taken steps since then, otherwise we wouldn't have won two prizes, but we are not yet so far that a 'winning culture' already prevails here in all respects.

"Our standards, our norms and values, still need to go up. I was not shocked (by what I inherited). But the culture, the mentality was really not good. To win, to really achieve top performance every week, we had to change a lot."

Ten Hag also discussed the situation of Jadon Sancho, who has been welcomed back into the first-team fold and featured in Saturday's 2-0 friendly win at Rangers.

"We spoke well. Everyone can make a mistake," Ten Hag said.

"This club needs good players, and one thing is certain: Jadon Sancho is a very good player. I hope that we will still click and that he will contribute to our success."

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