There's one area Man Utd fans don't believe in Erik ten Hag, and its absolutely critical

It has been a tricky season for Erik ten Hag, who has a job on his hands to meet the club’s targets and continue in his role for next season.

Erik ten Hag‘s first season in charge at Manchester United went, if anything, a little bit above expectation.

United fans wanted a top four finish or a trophy, and Erik ten Hag was able to deliver both. Normally, that would buy him a lot of time – but this is Manchester United.

Just look at Jose Mourinho, who won two trophies in his first season at the club, and was fired 18 months later.

How Manchester United’s season is going

A repeat of Mourinho’s fall from grace wasn’t really a consideration among United fans last summer when it came to Ten Hag. The fanbase was pretty convinced we had got our man.

However, by any metric, this season has been a disappointment. If you asked at the start of the season, to plot out a scenario where Ten Hag’s job could be in jeopardy, this is it…

There is one major positive still which might single-handedly save Ten Hag from himself, the chance to win silverware for a second successive season.

Manchester United are into the FA Cup semi-final. We are heavily favoured to beat Coventry City, meaning losing would be a total disaster, and for many, would be the final straw regarding the Dutchman’s future.

New investors Ineos are assessing the situation, and may hold off on a decision if Ten Hag reaches another Wembley final. But a defeat this weekend would not be surprising. Nor would a humiliation against Manchester City in the final, which equally could seal his fate.

Erik ten Hag tactics under fire

Manchester United fans want Erik ten Hag to succeed. This club needs stability, and chopping and changing the manager is no solution.

There are changes ongoing behind the scenes with Ineos appointing a new boardroom structure. Having some stability in the manager’s position would help, even if they one day wish to appoint their own man.

Ten Hag must show Ineos he deserves to stay, and there is one overwhelming piece of evidence which suggests he should not.

It’s what we see with our own eyes every time we watch Manchester United play, Erik ten Hag’s tactics are fatally flawed, with the team left far too open and easy to exploit.

Ten Hag wants to play a high-intensity style of chaos football, which involves lots of turnovers and chances at both ends. Right now he lacks the players to execute it properly, as shown by the team’s embarrassing goal difference of -1.

Despite the overwhelming evidence that Ten Hag’s style is easy to exploit, which we saw in the veryfirst game of this season against Wolves, he has refused to adapt his methods.

Manchester United are conceding a staggeringly high number of shots per game, and against top teams this is simply not sustainable. No victories feel controlled, with every victory feeling like it is a battle to get over the line.

For a stretch last season we had got past this. But Christian Eriksen and Casemiro have both gone backwards, or at least, they have in Erik ten Hag’s system.

With no protection from the wingers, United’s midfielders have too much space to cover, and at frequent times are pushing forward far too often, living on the edge.

United have allowed a staggering number of shots this season, more than any other team in the Premier League. This is not sustainable football we are watching, it is suicidal football.

Erik ten Hag has shown little interest in trying to fix it, and has been dismissive when questioned about these numbers.

Manchester United fans do not believe Ten Hag’s tactics are right, we can see it with our own eyes, backed up by the results on the pitch.

While injuries are a major detriment to United’s season, the players selected each week are being pointed to perform in a certain style, and it is just not working. United currently have fewer points at this stage of the season than we did in 2013/14 under David Moyes.

Winning the FA Cup may buy Ten Hag time, an extra season, to fix recruitment, overhaul the squad, and continue his project, backed by his youth development.

But unless he is able or willing to change his tactical approach and fix the problem which sees his team take more shots than a rugby team on a night out, then the manager is ultimately doomed to fail, and that will make no true fan of the club happy.