Graeme Souness ‘not convinced’ by three Man Utd players worth £110m | Football

United’s worst ever start to a Premier League campaign has left Ten Hag fighting to save his job at Old Trafford once again.

The Dutchman could only guide Manchester United to an eighth-place finish last season but was given more time following an impressive and surprising FA Cup final win over Manchester City.

United beat Fulham on the opening day but have won just one of their subsequent six league games to slip to 14th in the table, just five points above the relegation zone.

It was suggested that the United board could pull the trigger on Ten Hag during the international break but they seem willing to give the 54-year-old more time to turn the team’s fortunes around.

Souness expected Manchester United to improve this season but admits that already looks questionable and says Ten Hag needs to make his new signings work to avoid the sack.

United backed Ten Hag with several key signings over the summer but Souness is yet to be won over by Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui.

‘My assessment of Manchester United here last month was that I thought they’d be better this season, but the past five weeks suggest I may have been wrong,’ Souness told the Daily Mail.

‘I saw them at Crystal Palace where they were good and should have won. But against Tottenham they were poor, even before Bruno Fernandes was sent off.

‘Spurs looked fabulous but how much of that ‘fabulous’ was United being average? The Fernandes dismissal was harsh. He did have a bit of a kick-out but you won’t break anyone’s leg doing that.

‘But the fundamental point is this: many players are better than what they are showing and that’s on Erik because a manager’s No 1 job must be to get the best out of his players.

‘The club spent big again last summer but neither Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs de Ligt nor Noussair Mazraoui convince me.

‘Erik can’t say United haven’t supported him. By buying so many Dutch internationals and players he has managed previously, he has told the club: “I know these players. They will do a good job.”

‘If someone had brought them to his attention and he didn’t fancy them, he could have said: “No, I’ve worked with them before and they’re not for me.”

‘He has driven those transfers. His future now depends on making them work out.’

‘I’ve been there and I know that it is an unbelievable club with a lot of pressure. Everybody wants to talk about it,’ he told BBC Sport.

‘For me, it’s the biggest club in the world, which is talked about whatever city you go into. So, it comes with the territory and Manchester United want to win. Supporters want to win. And every manager who goes into the job wants to win as well.

‘It’s really difficult, but when you go into a job like that, it’s always going to be like that.

‘Manchester United is a brilliant, brilliant club supported all over the world. Because of that, there’s always the chance that if you don’t do well, you’re going to come in for some criticism.

‘I can’t speak for Erik ten Hag. I think he has showed brilliant resilience in the situation he is in. He should be credited for how well he has conducted himself.

‘I don’t see him ducking any questions or any media interviews, so I think you have to give him great credit for that.

‘But it’s a job which is going to attract immense pressure and have an immense amount of people talking. I think he is doing a brilliant job.’

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