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Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag has been made to look a fool over one of his first decisions
Erik ten Hag has been left ruing one of his first decisions as Man Utd manager.
Ten Hag admits Man Utd draw at Brentford could prove ‘expensive’
Erik ten Hag faces an increasingly daunting challenge to salvage Manchester United's season and potentially his position as the club's manager. Lisandro Martinez and Victor Lindelof are the latest casualties in an injury-stricken campaign, but the Dutchman may have brought the crisis upon himself.
On Tuesday, United confirmed that Martinez would be out for another month after suffering a calf strain during training and that Lindelof would also be unavailable for a similar period.
The latter suffered a hamstring problem in the second half of Saturday's dismal 1-1 draw at Brentford and was replaced by Martinez, emerging for his first appearance since February.
The Argentine World Cup winner had endured an eight-week lay-off due to a knee injury he suffered shortly after returning from three months out with a similar issue earlier in the season.
United will now be without Martinez for another few games as pressure ramps up on Ten Hag to qualify for the Champions League and win the FA Cup.
The Red Devils' latest two blows are the 52nd and 53rd cases of illness or injury that have caused one of Ten Hag's players to miss a game this season.
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It has reached a stage where questions have been raised over whether it is pure bad luck or whether the United dressing room's reported concerns over the intensity of training sessions are justified.
Ten Hag's decision to opt against bringing a fitness coach to the club when he arrived from Ajax in 2022 has bitten him in the back.
When he arrived at Old Trafford almost two years ago, the 54-year-old insisted on being joined by assistant coach Mitchell van der Gaag and analyst Kevin Keij.
However, he appeared to take a more lenient approach to the fitness side of his coaching staff, which may have left him vulnerable to the issues he has faced over the past several months.
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INEOS are analysing United's medical department as part of Sir Dave Brailsford's thorough audit of the club's football operations after Sir Jim Ratcliffe secured a 27.7 per cent stake in February.
Gary O'Driscoll, appointed from Arsenal to become a leading figure of United's new-look medical team in INEOS' data-driven environment, has led the process.
They will be determined to get to the bottom of the injury crisis that has plagued Carrington this term. A congested fixture list, based on other clubs' fitness-related struggles, has undoubtedly contributed.
But United's absences surpassing the 50-mark has left Ten Hag with an almost impossible task to build on his successful first year and will rightly raise concerns.