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Man Utd duo Erik ten Hag brutally axed from dressing room and where they are now
Erik ten Hag has been firm in his treatment of the stars within Manchester United's dressing room.
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag reviews the Fulham win
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag did not hesitate to upset the apple cart when he first arrived from Ajax in the summer. His treatment of Cristiano Ronaldo was the most public display of the Dutchman’s ruthlessness, not stepping down to the five-time Ballon d’Or winner amid his complaints over a reduced role, but first came the ousting of several players from the dressing room.
As several new signings joined Ten Hag in Manchester such as Casemiro, Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez, the first-team dressing room at United’s Carrington training ground complex began to get overcrowded. The Sun claimed that only 24 players could be accommodated and Ten Hag then began to axe several fringe players from the squad.
Phil Jones, Brandon Williams, Axel Tuanzebe, Shola Shoretire and Teden Mengi were all demoted to the reserve set-up and many were expected to leave the club. However, three remained at Old Trafford in the form of Jones, Williams and Mengi and only Williams has featured for the first team so far this campaign - a four-minute Carabao Cup cameo against Burnley in December.
Both Tuanzebe and Shoretire opted against dropping into the under-21 picture at United, however, as they sought exits from the club. Defender Tuanzebe did remain at Old Trafford for the first half of the season in an attempt to win over Ten Hag, but at the end of the January window he joined Stoke on loan for the remainder of the campaign.
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Having recently recovered from a back injury, the former England under-21 centre-back has recently begun to cement himself in the Potters’ defence and his displays have not gone unnoticed at international level. Both he and United’s Aaron Wan-Bissaka have been approached over the possibility of representing DR Congo, according to African publication Leopard Football Leader.
Positive talks were reportedly held as neither side have made a senior England appearance and Tuanzebe qualifies as he was born in Bunia, while Wan-Bissaka is of Congolese descent.
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Tuanzebe will be hoping for a successful remainder of the season at Stoke, while Soretire made a similar decision to him by opting to temporarily leave United in search of regular gametime, joining Bolton in League One for the remainder of the season as a January loan.
The 19-year-old winger has been a regular under Ian Evatt as they look to return to the Championship.
He is yet to get on the scoresheet but has been a positive spark, though will be bemoaning the cup-tied rules as he will not be able to help his side on the pitch at Wembley on Sunday in the EFL Trophy final against Plymouth, having featured against Bolton for United under-21s earlier int he competition.