Former Manchester United midfielder Luke Chadwick has compared the tactical approach of new manager Erik ten Hag to that of Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp.
Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside, Chadwick has admitted he’s been impressed with what he’s seen from Man Utd in pre-season so far, suggesting that the new manager is clearly making an impact.
Ten Hag had a fine reputation at Ajax, but it still looked a bit of a gamble to go for the Dutch tactician over some more proven names like Mauricio Pochettino.
Chadwick thinks the appointment is now paying off, with United clearly playing a new style of football under Ten Hag, which he feels has its similarities with Liverpool under Klopp.
“Without a shadow of the doubt, you can see a different style of play,” Chadwick said. “They’re playing out from the back more, they’re playing more quickly through the lines. They’re scored some absolutely fantastic goals, lovely team moves, getting players on the ball in the final third.
“The signs are encouraging, Sancho looks back to his best, Martial’s had a really good pre-season. It’s very promising, it’s just what you’d want to see – a new style of play coming through.
“The fans have come to expect good football, that’s what United were known for under Sir Alex Ferguson but it’s not really happened in the years since he retired. Ten Hag plays a really exciting brand of football and you can see the players are buying into it.
“You see some clips on social media as well – he’s very demanding and not afraid to lay into his players if they’re not playing it on the floor. The training looks quite regimented and he really knows what he wants from his players. I think we’re set for an encouraging start to the season.
“At the moment it looks quite similar to Jurgen Klopp’s style of football, but I think he’s also got his own brand. He’s got a huge reputation from what he achieved at Ajax, similarly to Klopp when he arrived after doing impressive work at Borussia Dortmund. Let’s see if he can also come to the Premier League and consistently deliver results in probably the best league in the world.
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“I think maybe the difference between Klopp’s style of play and Ten Hag’s is that Klopp’s teams don’t really get the midfielders further forward. Ten Hag likes his midfield players to join his attackers and get in the box.
“It’ll be exciting to see how his methodology will work at United, but the early signs look really positive. Let’s hope he can build on that.”