Donny Van de Beek one side, Martial on the other as we take a look at the biggest winners and losers amidst Ten Hag’s appointment at Manchester United

Finally, the dream of most Manchester United faithful of having the fringe players move on from the club is set to be fulfilled with appointment of a man who brings something different from what the club is known for.

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The appointment of Erik Ten Hag will probably be the first United have made of a modern manager, whose philosophy is to dominate possession just as it is being practiced in the other side of Manchester, led by a renown name in the game, Pep Guardiola.

In order to successfully implement his ideology, he has to parade players capable of executing this plan and there are lots of players at United who are obviously not meant for the type of system.

There have been question marks over the ability of some players but due to the amount of investment on them, it has become very difficult for any manager to leave them out of the team for long. While leadership role is also a factor to consider but under a new permanent manager, every player might be starting from scratch.

Also, the current Ajax manager has also been appointed to oversee what will be a long term project, hence, there may be no room for aged players and he will prefer players who will be around for long, so that the team may become stronger with time.

First, we take a look at those who will benefit more from the Dutchman’s appointment :

Donny van de Beek

Of course the Dutch midfielder comes first on the list. Since leaving Ten Hag and Ajax in the summer of 2020, his career has been in limbo as he has struggled to get into the team under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and even under the interim boss, Ralf Rangnick.

The 25 year old, who is now on loan at Everton was a fantastic player under Ten Hag at Ajax and even made the 30 man shortlist for the 2019 balon d'or having helped Ajax to the league title and the semi final of the UEFA Champions League.

Donny van de Beek is currently on loan at Everton.

Under Ten Hag, he was a world class midfielder, scoring 32 goals and registered 29 assists in 110 games. He is a man that will be most excited of his countryman's appointment and this will be a massive opportunity for him to rejuvenate his career, if of course he can leverage on it.

Jadon Sancho

The mercurial winger arrived from Borussia Dortmund last summer but hasn't really get going in his country, maybe due to the inconsistency of the team in general. It is obvious Sancho is gifted but only glimpse has been shown so far.

A man that costed around £73 million and has a staggering reputation in the Bundesliga, where he broke a lot of records including the youngest player to reach 50 assists in the German top-flight, surely the former Manchester City teenager has more in his locker to be unlocked.

Ten Hag’s arrival will be a profitable one for him as the free flowing football will suit him well when taking on oppositions. The runnings of his teammates will help him distract defenders and he will be able to affect play from the flanks.

Just what he loves to do, Sancho has three goals and as many assists in 28 Premier League games this season, which is considerably poor for a player of his eminence and the numbers will only get better under Ten Hag.

Cristiano Ronaldo

“His heading, his jump, his timing. That takes thousands of hours of training, like with his free kicks and kicking technique. He’s so talented but he constantly demands the best out of himself. That's the difference with the subtop.”

These are what Ten Hag had to say about Ronaldo in 2017 but of course, which manager will not be pleased with having the Portuguese on their side.

The former Real Madrid forward has been nothing but sensational since his return to Old Trafford in the summer and has also been the club's best performer, with 15 league goals already in 26 games while also scoring six times in the Champions League.

The project Ten Hag has is for long term and even though Ronaldo can not be up for that due to his age, just one season or two under the Dutchman can help him achieve something positive on his second spell at United.

With several new arrivals expected at the club in the summer, should Ronaldo remain at the club, his numbers are sure to get better next season but if not, that gives Ten Hag the chance to bring in a striker that will serve on a long term.

Marcus Rashford

The Mancunian golden boy is in need of a career saving manager and if he can get back his lost form in the coming few months, Ten Hag will come in as a man to help him actualize his potentials.

Marcus Rashford will get another chance to rescue his Manchester career under Erik Ten Hag.

With the way the 24 year old get off his career, it is so disappointing where he is at the moment and a new manager coming in gives him one more chance to rescue his time at United.

Over the past few seasons, the English forward has struggled with fitness and form. Whilst staying fit is a priority if he is to get on the hood side of Ten Hag, Rashford will also need to rediscover his form or be forced out of the club.

Anthony Elanga and the youth

The time seems right for Anthony Elanga’s breakthrough as a result of injuries and lost of form of most of the senior players. If at all Ten Hag has been watching the team lately, he'll surely have his eyes on the Swedish teenager.

Knowing his reputation with young players, Elanga, as well as other impressive youth players should get excited for they can also be the focal point of the team, if they prove deserving of the chance.

The likes of Amad Diallo, Tahith Chong, Zidane Iqbal, Hannibal Mejbri, Shola Shoretire, Alejandro Garnacho should be look out for in preseason games in the coming summer.

Alex Tellex

At Manchester United, the Brazilian defender has barely looked like he was at Porto. Good news for him is that he flourished under Sergio Conciecao, whose approach to the game is fast and aggressive, it will be easy for him to fit into the system of Ten Hag.

Tellex enjoyed a successful spell under the Portuguese manager and was able to express himself at both ends of the pitch, making a total of 150, scoring 25 goals and registering 47 assists from left-back, those could be better number than expected from even a modern fullback.

The time might have come from Manchester United to finally reap the rewards of the £15.4 million they paid to Porto in the summer of 2020.

Also, these are the list of players, whom the arrival of the for Go Ahead Eagle's manager is bad news for:

David de Gea

No question about the ability of the Spanish goalkeeper with his hands while he also does has good reflexes. However, more is demanded of a modern goalkeeper which the former Atletico Madrid man does not possess.

For a manager that loves his team to play out from the back and always keep possession, it is required of the goalkeeper to have very good footwork which is a major weakness for de Gea.

As evidence to what happened to English goalkeeper at Manchester City when Pep Guardiola was appointed, Ten Hag’s arrival could spell the end for David at a club he joined in the summer of 2011

Harry Maguire

At this stage, the £80 million Manchester United paid to Leicester City might be the only reason the Manchester United captain is still getting regular minutes as everything he does now doesn't seem to come off good.

Harry Maguire can't just get away from his critics as things never go his way.

The 29-year-old England international has been subject to lots of criticism due to his awful defending and things never seem to be going his way at moment in anytime.

The arrival of Ten Hag may hasten the inevitable him and a lot of United fans will be pleased as the player is not one of their favourites at the club.

Anthony Martial

Martial is one player that arrived at Manchester United with a lot of expectations but has apparently failed so far. Currently on loan at Sevilla and not even convincing for a place when he returned in the summer, the way out could be from Spain for the French forward.

His inability to put in shift has rendered him ineffective whenever United have to chase the games. Martial has been branded 'Lazy' and that will not work under Ten Hag.

The arrival of Ten Hag is a challenge for him and it will take more than what he is known for in the last three season to convince for s stay at the club with Ten Hag.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka

Former Crystal Palace defender, Wan-Bissaka is not really a type of full back one would expect a modern manager to favour. He is more of a traditional fullback with good defensive qualities but in no man's land in the final third.

Ten Hag loves his full back to get forward in support of the attackers, and that quality has seen Noussair Mazraoui become his favourite right full back at Ajax.

Wan-Bissaka is sure to be one of those negatively affected by the Dutchman’s arrival unless the manager has another position lined up for him, he will be one of those whose time is up at the club.

Luke Shaw

The left-back has been too inconsistent to be reliable so a move away might be on the cards, since United has Alex Tellex and Brandon Williams will also be returning.

Phil Jones

For a player that has no part to play at the club under whoever the manager is, it was a surprise when Manchester United gave Phil Jones a new contract in 2019 which now runs until 2023.

Ten Hag may look to move the player on this summer to cut off one of the deadwoods at the club.

Others

The likes of Juan Mata, Jesse Lingard, Paul Pogba and Edinson Cavani will also have their current contract run out in the summer. They appear as players who will not be needed by the new manager so it will be very easy to get them off the book.

It looks like Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard are into their final season at Manchester United.

The calibre of players set to leave in the summer is even one of the best part of the reasons to get excited, because a lot of players at the club only there to eat up spaces, with nothing to offer the team going forward.

Author: Kehinde Hassan Afolabi