The Jadon Sancho and Erik Ten Hag situation would not have been played out publicly under Sir Alex Ferguson’s watch, believes one former Manchester United man.
Sancho and current United manager Ten Hag were involved in an astonishing media exchange around the Arsenal game after the 23-year-old England international was ousted from the matchday squad. Ten Hag put that decision down to what he described as underwhelming training performances.
The ex-Ajax manager is thought to stand by his comments, too, after Sancho questioned the Dutchman via social media. It has been the talking point at Old Trafford and beyond during the first international break this season, and former United man Louis Saha has now shared his thoughts.
Speaking to bookmakers, Paddy Power, the Frenchman said: “If a similar situation between Jadon Sancho and Erik ten Hag happened when Sir Alex Ferguson was in charge, he would’ve put the player on his bench or in the stands for a few weeks.”
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Saha added: “No one would’ve questioned the decision, because it’s about competition and there are other good players around for spots in the team. He was the man in charge and no one could question him publicly, especially when you know how he would react.
“Nobody would mess with Sir Alex. In my era, things were a bit more private, but now it seems like managers think they have to speak to journalists in a very open and honest way all the time.
“Sometimes it can help, but sometimes that can be dangerous and create an awkward situation for a while. We’ve seen managers where they open up unnecessarily, and this was one of those times, as you don’t need to leave out a player and then expose him.
“He’s already not doing too well so he’s [Ten Hag] putting Sancho’s head down under the water a bit. It’s a private decision, sometimes the manager has to go public about a player, but it wasn’t necessary.
“Sancho then has to defend himself, he thinks he’s done okay physically and commitment wise and his manager is asking for more. I feel sorry for both, because it’s an unnecessary situation.
“Sometimes those difficult discussions have to be private and, even if you shout and you are not happy, you keep that to yourself and not to the journalists because look at the situation now. It puts Sancho in the situation where he has to defend himself. He’s professional and he wants to prove that he can play for the club.”
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