Ex-Arsenal icon who rejected Man Utd accuses stars of "hiding" behind Erik ten Hag

French World Cup winner Emmanuel Petit, 53, hasn't held back in his view of some of Manchester United's big hitters in relation to their under-pressure manager Erik ten Hag

World Cup winner Emmanuel Petit has come out in defence of Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag - and claimed the club’s superstars hide behind him.

The Red Devils have emerged from a slow start to the new season with a 3-0 win at Southampton and a 7-0 thumping of Barnsley in the Carabao Cup. But some of their big hitters are still struggling to make their mark even though it is Dutch boss ten Hag getting plenty of stick. And former France midfielder Petit, part of the Arsenal side who won the Double in 1997-98, reckons they have a lot to answer for.

On BetMGM’s The LineUp, he said: “I don’t agree with all of the criticism around Erik ten Hag. It’s so hard for a club when they keep changing managers as much as Manchester United have and I actually look at the players there and think they are hiding behind him.

“I don’t like it. These are players with real pedigree and they hide behind him instead of fronting up and doing a job for the team. It’s such a pity to see the club in the state it’s in. The Premier League needs Manchester United back at its best and it starts with the players.

“Yes, the manager is responsible for a lot of things and so are the board for getting it right in the transfer market, but at the end of the day it’s the responsibility of the players on the pitch and they haven’t been good enough for some time now.”

Petit, 53, also revealed he turned down the chance to join United in 2001. He recalled: " Before I joined Chelsea, Sir Alex Ferguson called me twice as he knew I wasn’t happy at Barcelona and we spoke at length about the project.

"[Arsenal boss] Arsene Wenger also called me to ask what the situation was but Claudio [Ranieri] came in person to meet me. We had lunch together and he was so nice. He really convinced me that Chelsea was the right move and so I moved there. Ferguson called me twice — one of which was a couple of weeks after I arrived — but I said I had made my mind up.”

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