Ahead of the derby against Man City, Coach Erik ten Hag believes that Man Utd is becoming more confident with a three-game winning streak and is a tough club to face for any opponent.
“The match against Man City is certainly a big test,” Ten Hag said on October 27 in the press conference before the match at Old Trafford. “You can see that Man Utd is back where they want to be. They are a hard-to-beat team, and they have found a way to win. So, we are moving in the right direction.”
Man Utd had a difficult start to this season, losing four out of their first nine Premier League matches and their first two in the Champions League. However, in their last three games, they have secured victories against Brentford, Sheffield, and Copenhagen, with narrow margins of one goal.
Nevertheless, those were all relatively weaker opponents and the goals scored by Man Utd in those matches were by midfielders and defenders. According to Ten Hag, the forwards Rasmus Hojlund and Marcus Rashford have performed well but need to be more cohesive and have sharper finishing. “There were many situations where Man Utd dominated the opponent in the penalty area but couldn’t score or even missed the target. We have to do better,” the 53-year-old coach expressed. “I am confident that with the quality of the players, they will take the field and score more goals.”
Rashford was the standout player for Man Utd last season, scoring 30 goals and providing 11 assists in 56 matches across all competitions, including 17 in the Premier League, six in the Europa League, six in the League Cup, and one in the FA Cup. Thanks to this, the English forward received the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year award, as voted by the fans, and the Player of the Year award, as his teammates chose at Man Utd’s annual end-of-season awards ceremony.
This season, Rashford has scored just one goal and provided one assist in the first nine Premier League rounds. However, Coach Ten Hag reaffirmed his trust in Rashford and strongly believes that the 25-year-old forward will return to scoring more goals.
The Dutch coach also stated that Casemiro is not in the best physical condition and is racing against time to return for the Man City match. The 31-year-old central midfielder missed the victories against Sheffield in the Premier League and Copenhagen in the Champions League due to an ankle injury he sustained while on international duty with Brazil during the World Cup 2026 qualifiers in the South American region.
On the other hand, several other Man Utd players, such as Tyrell Malacia, Lisandro Martinez, and Amad Diallo, continue to be absent due to injuries. At the same time, Jadon Sancho is still internally suspended for disciplinary issues.
In contrast, Alejandro Garnacho is ready to play despite the controversy regarding a social media post about his teammate Andre Onana. Coach Ten Hag said he is not worried about the possibility of disciplinary action from the English Football Association (FA). Onana, the Cameroonian goalkeeper, also spoke out in defense of Garnacho, stating that his teammate had no racial connotations in his actions.
