Man United manager Ten Hag defends his disciplinary measures

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag said he inherited a bad culture at Old Trafford as he refused to offer more details on Jadon Sancho’s future at the club on Friday.
Sancho has been ordered to train away from his teammates after taking to social media to complain he has been made “a scapegoat” under Ten Hag, who dropped the winger for a 3-1 defeat at Arsenal earlier this month due to poor performances in training. United are also without another wide forward in Antony for today’s visit of Brighton after he was given a leave of absence to fight allegations of domestic abuse. Ten Hag has earned the reputation of a strict disciplinarian during his time at United after also leaving out Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcus Rashford last season for breaches of team discipline.
But the Dutch boss said he had been brought to the club to change the culture at the Red Devils. “Strict lines is what the club asked me (to bring), because there was no good culture before last season. I had to set good standards,” said Ten Hag. “It is never someone makes one mistake, it is a whole process before you come to a certain outcome about strict lines.”
The former Ajax boss added he had “no idea” how long Antony will be unavailable for selection. “Of course he is disappointed, but he is okay,” added Ten Hag on the Brazilian’s state of mind. Injuries have compounded those absences with Raphael Varane, Luke Shaw and Mason Mount still sidelined. Sofyan Amrabat will also have to wait for his United debut. But centre-backs Lisandro Martinez and Victor Lindelof are fit despite being forced off through injury and illness respectively against Arsenal.
Their return means Harry Maguire will likely be denied his first start at club level this season. England manager Gareth Southgate launched an impassioned defence of the centre-back after he was taunted by Scotland fans in the Three Lions’ 3-1 friendly win at Hampden Park on Tuesday. Maguire’s mum then took to social media to hit out at the “totally unacceptable” abuse she claimed her son had been subject to by fans and pundits.
Ten Hag stripped Maguire of the United captaincy earlier this season due to his lack of minutes on the field, but also came out to defend his player. “He does not deserve it, he is a great player and given great performances,” he added. “It’s crazy but it’s how it works and Harry has to block this (out) by (his) performances.”

Guardiola happy to hold onto ‘unique’ Walker
Meanwhile, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola believes it would have been impossible to replace Kyle Walker if the England right-back had left the Premier League champions instead of extending his contract till 2026. Walker, 33, had been closely linked with a move to Bayern Munich during the transfer window after being left out of Guardiola’s starting line-up for the Champions League final in June.
But Walker has been a key figure in the City side that has won five Premier League titles since he joined from Tottenham six years ago. “Kyle is an important figure for us. Not just the club, the players demanded he could not leave,” said Guardiola on Friday. “I spoke with mates and lots of people and they told me Kyle cannot leave. He has qualities you can’t find across the world. He can control the best wingers on the planet, who can do better than him? His mind is there and here in the pitch. In terms of genetics, few players I’ve seen are like him. They are unique.”
City are the only Premier League side with a perfect record four games into the season. But Guardiola’s men face arguably their toughest test so far this campaign when they visit high-flying West Ham today. The City boss will return to the bench after missing the victories over Sheffield United and Fulham as he recovered from back surgery in his native Catalonia.
Jack Grealish, John Stones and Mateo Kovacic will miss the trip to the London Stadium due to injury. And with the return of the Champions League around the corner, Guardiola said City’s season now starts for real with two games a week to cope with. “The season always starts right now, after the first international break, when the transfer window is over,” he added.
Fixtures
Today (1400 GMT unless stated): Wolves v Liverpool (1130), Aston Villa v Crystal Palace, Fulham v Luton, Manchester United v Brighton, Tottenham v Sheffield United, West Ham v Manchester City, Newcastle v Brentford (1630)
Tomorrow: Bournemouth v Chelsea (1300), Everton v Arsenal (1530)
Monday: Nottingham v Burnley (1845)