Erik ten Hag reveals private Dan Ashworth talks amid growing Man Utd sack pressure
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag faces two key games this week with the Dutchman scrambling to keep hold of the top job at Old Trafford after an awful run of results this term
by Daniel Orme · The MirrorErik ten Hag is in constant dialogue with boss Dan Ashworth as he desperately clings onto his job.
The Dutchman is at huge pressure at Old Trafford after leading Manchester United to their joint worst-ever Premier League start. And while club chiefs are happy to leave him in charge for the time being, Ten Hag faces a decisive week.
The Red Devils take on Porto in the Europa League on Thursday evening before a showdown with Aston Villa at the weekend. Ten Hag needs some positive results to answer some serious questions.
And he has now revealed that he regularly speaks with director of football Ashworth and believes he still has the ex-Newcastle chief’s full belief.
Speaking in a press conference ahead of his side’s clash with Porto, Ten Hag said: "We talk everyday. We are a union and we made that commitment in the summer.
“We refreshed the staff and I appointed my assistants, I appointed the staff. I did this. We refreshed the squad as well."
The Dutchman added: "It's not necessary to give me confidence. We talk every day about how we can improve this club, this team, improve the processes, the procedures, the connections. That is what we talk about."
Ten Hag looked set to leave the club in the summer. But minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe performed a dramatic u-turn to keep him before agreeing a new deal and spending heavily on the squad.
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A vast majority of the signings including Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui had previously played under Ten Hag. And Ashworth believes that is not a problem having leapt to Ten Hag’s defence earlier this season.
"It's human nature to work with somebody you’ve worked with previously in all contexts, in all business contexts," Ashworth said last month. "That is a natural sway, because you know that person, because you know that player.
“But we've also signed a number of players this summer who haven’t worked with Erik previously – Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, he’d never worked with Joshua Zirkzee - and you can’t say 'just because he’s Dutch' that he knows him.
"You would put the whole of the English market to me [if that were the case]. He’s not worked with him before. He’s worked with Matthijs and Nous [Mazraoui] previously, but as I’ve said before, they were both on our radar and it’s a joined-up decision on who comes in and out of this football club."
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