The tension has once again risen a notch on the side of Manchester United. This Tuesday, the club banned journalists accused of disrupting the life of Erik ten Hag’s group.
It has almost become a ritual on the Manchester United side. A very sad habit which once again sees the historic Premier League club be prey to great tensions around its team. Disappointing on the pitch, Erik ten Hag’s men are now at the center of a controversy which has pushed the Mancunian management to exclude several journalists from the Dutch coach’s press conferences. The latter are accused of disseminating information without offering United to comment on it.
The “banned” thus represent some of the most important media when it comes to following English football. Sky Sports, The Mirror, ESPN or even the Manchester Evening News. As explained by Dailymail, the order not to open the doors of Manchester United to the journalists in question, was given by the club’s communications director, Andrew Ward. For his part, Erik ten Hag confirmed the grievances of his management: “ They should come to us first rather than writing behind our backs. That’s not the way to do it. I think we can have another relationship. They can, they should come to us first, so that we can have a normal, professional conversation, so that we can discuss it.“
Locker room in crisis?
The fact remains that the tension and nervousness are becoming more and more palpable around a club which has no longer managed to fight for the Premier League title for more than a decade (except perhaps on a or two seasons). According to the punished media, Erik ten Hag would have lost the confidence of half of his locker room. Seventh in the ranking, nine points behind the leader (Arsenal), the Red Devils continue to disappoint their supporters. While waiting for the probable arrival of Sir Jim Ratcliffe who should buy 25% of the shares of the Glazer family, owner of the club, the trouble continues to sail for United. As long as it does not sink for good, hope for better days remains.
