How has Erik ten Hag instantly turned Manchester United into trophy winners?

Erik ten Hag has won his first trophy as Manchester United manager just nine months after taking over at one of the lowest moments in the Old Trafford giants’ recent history.

After Sunday’s 2-0 win against Newcastle in the Carabao Cup final, the PA news agency takes a look at the Red Devils’ turnaround under the impressive Dutchman.

How bad were things when Ten Hag took over?

Why was Ten Hag chosen?

After an interview process for Solskjaer’s permanent successor, the club ended speculation by naming Ajax boss Ten Hag as the man to lead them forward on April 21, 2022. Ten Hag was a proven winner at Ajax, having left with three Eredivisie titles, two Dutch cups and an unforgettable run to the Champions League semi-finals in 2019, plus he had shown an ability to nurture young talent and develop players.

What did Ten Hag do to get started?

How has Ten Hag reshaped things?

What change has he made to the culture?

Luke Shaw recently highlighted Ten Hag’s control and rules – discipline that saw Alejandro Garnacho shunned on tour and in-form Marcus Rashford start on the bench against Wolves on New Year’s Eve having overslept and been late to a team meeting. Long-serving Shaw also said the United boss keeps “everyone on their toes” by dropping underperforming players, saying “in the past that’s not been the case”. United captain Harry Maguire was dropped after the first two games of the season ended in defeat and has struggled for starts ever since. As for star name Ronaldo, the disgruntled frontman missed the pre-season due to family matters and was annoyed about his utilisation in the first section of the season. The 37-year-old’s critical, explosive interview with Piers Morgan saw his contract cancelled. United have won 15 out of 19 matches in all competitions since Ronaldo’s exit, losing just once at Premier League leaders Arsenal.

What next for Ten Hag and United?

Sunday’s Carabao Cup win was United’s first silverware since 2017, ending their longest trophy drought in 40 years. It saw Ten Hag join Jose Mourinho as the only managers in United’s history to win a major trophy in their first season and on-loan Wout Weghorst – the surprise replacement for departed star Ronaldo – says they are “hungry for more”. The striker said his manager is “living to win”, meaning attention turns straight from winning silverware to clawing back Arsenal’s league lead, progressing in the Europa League and knocking West Ham out of the FA Cup on Wednesday night. The United boss received applause from Sir Alex Ferguson, chief executive Richard Arnold and co-owner Avram Glazer in the tunnel after Sunday’s win at Wembley, but he knows there is plenty more to do.