Erik ten Hag could be hampered by the lack of depth at Manchester United after Gary Neville highlighted the need for the Red Devils to bolster their squad in several areas
Gary Neville spoke about Manchester United’s lack of depth in 2020
The lack of depth at Manchester United could prove costly this season - three years since Gary Neville urged the Glazers to strengthen the squad with more “great” players.
Many United fans are concerned with the sheer size of the United squad, despite spending over £150million on seven new arrivals. Mason Mount, Rasmus Hojlund and Andre Onana all signed from Chelsea, Atalanta and Ajax respectively, while Sofyan Amrabat, Sergio Reguilon, Altay Bayindir and Jonny Evans arrived on Deadline Day.
However, United’s squad is seemingly thinner than last season, with several players also shown the exit door, including Anthony Elanga, Fred and David de Gea. Meanwhile Wout Weghorst and Marcel Sabitzer - who both joined on loan in January - returned to Burnley and Bayern Munich respectively.
Injuries to Mount, Raphael Varane, Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw, Amad and Tyrell Malacia have not helped Ten Hag’s cause either, and he was forced to name Dan Gore and Hannibal Mejbri among the substitutes in the 3-1 defeat at Arsenal. In fact, out of the nine on the bench, four had not made a senior appearance before Sunday’s match, while only Evans and Harry Maguire had played over 100 matches for the club.
And three years ago, Neville highlighted similar issues at United. He admitted the Red Devils need to have two or three “great” players in every position - something Ten Hag simply does not have at the moment.
“I don’t think this Manchester United team at this moment can challenge for the title next season,” Neville said on Sky Sports in July 2020. “It needs more additions and more of the right additions.
“To be fair to Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer], in the time he has been at the club, I think the players he has brought in have improved his team enormously. I think that he needs three or four more of those as a minimum before he can even think about getting up into third or second place.
Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United are struggling with a lack of depth (
Image:
Getty Images)
“My concern isn’t really for the front three or the midfield three, it’s the depth and the drop that you have beneath that talent. When I say that Manchester United need a centre-forward, that’s not me saying they should sell Anthony Martial.
“They need a centre-forward because Manchester United should have two or three great centre-forwards. They should have two or three great wingers. Not just one in each position.”
The Red Devils are back in action when they face Brighton on September 16, before they return to the Champions League to face Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena four days later.
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