Man Utd: Ten Hag aims another dig at INEOS as he reveals true feelings about Neville, Ferdinand
Former Man Utd head coach Erik ten Hag has aimed another dig at INEOS with the Red Devils co-owners “of the opinion that they knew already everything”.
Ten Hag was sacked by the Red Devils in October 2024 after a poor start to the season which saw Man Utd lying in 13th position in the Premier League.
The Dutchman had survived a summer review from new co-owners INEOS but they didn’t hang around long to replace him with Ruben Amorim.
In the first part of a two-part interview with Ten Hag in The Athletic, the former Man Utd boss accused INEOS of “continuing the toxic culture” during their tenure at the club.
And now in the second part of the same interview, Ten Hag has revealed that INEOS “were of the opinion that they knew already everything” and didn’t want to take any of his advice on board.
Ten Hag told The Athletic: “A manager should get, by the end, all the information. You need others in a club to collect all the information and make everything ready to make final decisions. Top organisations innovate continually and they’re actually driving the innovations.
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“I offered my knowledge and abilities to INEOS to help them to construct, but they were of the opinion that they knew already everything. They were convinced of, say, the philosophy, the strategy, the work methods. But they came from petrochemicals, from Formula 1, from cycling. Top football demands something totally different.”
I had a very good relationship with all the former Man Utd players – Ten Hag
Ten Hag was often the subject of criticism from former players, like Gary Neville and Rio Ferdinand, during his time at Man Utd but the Dutchman possesses no ill-feeling towards the duo.
Ten Hag added: “It’s everywhere the same; they always want to protect their legacies. It’s no different than Bayern Munich or Ajax; they do the same. But they are (part of United’s) history, and they do not always know what’s going on. Football evolves. For United, it’s clear: they had great contributions, they achieved massive results, trophies for the club and for themselves, so I respect them.
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“I have to say, I had a very good relationship with them all, with Gary Neville, Rio Ferdinand. I did nice interviews with them both, so it didn’t hurt me. Of course, they have podcasts, they have their models. Sometimes it’s difficult for players. Some of them get affected by it, get annoyed by it.
“They achieved massive successes. But also, they can help the club more, help the players more. There should be two ways that they support it. But I think always the thing you most love, you most criticise.”
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