Erik ten Hag has kept one remaining two Bayern Munich promises at Manchester United to land 60m rated star

Manchester United pulled within a point of the top four with a 1-0 win over West Ham United at Old Trafford on Sunday evening.

Marcus Rashford, who hopes to be named to Gareth Southgate’s England squad for the World Cup, scored his 100th goal for United, blasting an impressive header past Hammers goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski. Despite the fact that his sixth goal of the season was enough to secure United’s second consecutive Premier League home win, they rode their luck in the second half.

David de Gea made a slew of saves to keep Manchester United’s lead intact, including two spectacular saves to deny Kurt Zouma and Declan Rice. For the second time in recent weeks, the Reds had to dig deep to complete the task and score as many points as possible.

It was similar to when they had to put their bodies on the line in the dying minutes of their 2-1 victory at Goodison Park a little over three weeks ago. United had a lead to defend, and it was up to Erik ten Hag’s players to roll up their sleeves and finish the job.

Forward players have been asked to track back and assist defenders in those situations, demonstrating Ten Hag’s emphasis on teamwork. Defensive players, on the other hand, have assisted attackers in attacking scenarios.

Full-backs Diogo Dalot and Luke Shaw, in particular, have been tasked with moving forward as much as can, while Lisandro Martinez and Casemiro, whose main tasks are to defend and keep the back door shut, have played progressive, forward-thinking passes to move United high up the pitch. But, given Ten Hag’s determination to play this way, this should come as no surprise to anyone following United.

During his time at Ajax, the Dutchman, who will lead his team to Spain later this week to play Real Sociedad in a crucial Europa League battle, opened up about his footballing philosophy, which was inspired by Pep Guardiola, with whom he worked at Bayern Munich. Ten Hag explained how he is concerned about controlling possession and having everyone attack and defend as one unit.

In April of this year, Ten Hag told SZ: “Every weekend, I watch Bayern play. Bayern Munich has become my club. Football in Germany has changed since Pep [worked there].

“I saw practically every training session at the time, and I took a lot of methodical lessons on how to apply his ideas on the field. I want to have possession and inflict damage on my opponent.

“It’s all about possession, movement, vertical attacking patterns, pressing, and wingers moving into the center to make room for fullbacks. Everyone is defending and everyone is attacking.”

Ten Hag has regularly stated his want to control games and be the orchestrator since the start of his United Premiership. However, as the second half against West Ham demonstrated, United will face scenarios in which they will be required to absorb pressure and play differently.

However, as Ten Hag stated in another interview, he is willing to adjust his technique in particular scenarios, which has shown so far this season.

“No, because there are occasions and situations when I coach differently and let my team play differently,” the Dutchman responded to a question about always wanting to be a “very attack-minded coach” in an interview with Ajax TV.

“It must be compatible with Ajax’s DNA. It may be different at another club, but Ajax must learn various techniques in order to be successful.”

The first few months of the season have demonstrated that United will need to master diverse techniques,’ in Ten Hag’s words. They have won in a variety of ways, which only proves that the Dutchman has pounded his standards into his players.

For example, victories over Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur were achieved by playing with tremendous energy, dominating throughout, and never seeming threatened. In contrast, the victories over Everton, Southampton, and West Ham, all by a single goal, forced United to dig deep and be professional.

United fans are seeing signs of Ten Hag’s ideology in the sense that the Reds are progressive and aim to play fantastic football. They are also watching Ten Hag’s capacity to be flexible in order to manage games and get the job done.