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Erik ten Hag will get Manchester United into gear and enable them to meet high expectations this upcoming Premier League season, according to left-back Luke Shaw.
Ten Hag arrived in the close season to replace interim manager Ralf Rangnick, who in turn followed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, after United finished the league season in sixth on 58 points – their lowest tally in the Premier League era and 13 points off the Champions League spots.
The former Ajax coach is the fifth permanent manager to take over at Old Trafford since Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, and United were expected to be active in the transfer market as Ten Hag aims to rebuild.
But United have only signed Feyenoord left-back Tyrell Malacia so far, despite Rangnick suggesting the Red Devils may need up to 10 players to reshape their squad to compete.
While the lack of transfer activity remains questionable, Shaw believes Ten Hag will raise the performance levels and provide a structure that was lacking in previous seasons.
“It’s clear that he’s a top, top manager,” Shaw, who played 20 league games last season, said at a fan event in Bangkok. “He has a structure to play the way he wants us to play.
“We haven’t had that for quite a while and it was clear to see last season, which was extremely disappointing.
“We have to bounce back, and he has been working us extremely hard, but I think we need it. We’re really looking forward to this season because I know it’s going to be much better than the last one.”
Shaw was joined by team-mates Raphael Varane and Anthony Martial in a question-and-answer segment at the event, and was asked to provide a word that best reflects United’s new outlook.
While Varane and Martial provided non-committal responses, Shaw proclaimed the team’s ambition with the word “trophy”, something United have not picked up since the Europa League in 2017.
Before travelling to Australia for an exhibition tour, United will face Liverpool on Tuesday in Thailand to kick off their pre-season.
