1-1, in the 35th round of the Premier League, Manchester United failed to continue the momentum of beating Sheffield United 4-2, and was held to a draw by Burnley at home, with only one win in the last six Premier League rounds. Manchester United's progress at the crucial end of the season has also dimmed the team's hopes of finishing in the top four of the Premier League, with 13 league points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa so far, and with only four league games remaining, Manchester United have basically missed out on the top four.
Although United theoretically have one last hope of winning the FA Cup (against Manchester City), a defeat this season is inevitable regardless of the outcome. But despite this, Manchester United manager Ten Hag's position is still worry-free, leaving countless Manchester United fans gritting their teeth but helpless.
According to ESPN, Ten Hag remains the manager in Ratcliffe's plans, and for the simple reason that United are struggling to find a more suitable manager in the transfer market.
Ten Hag will purge seven big stars
Ten Hag seems to be very confident in his position, and has already drawn up a team purge plan before the summer window, and seems to have decided that his position is as secure as a mountain. In his plan, seven first-team players, including Raphael Varane, Marcus Rashford, Victor Lindelof, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Anthony Martial, Jadon Sancho and Mason Greenwood, are either free to leave or sold at a low price.
Casemiro's situation is a bit more complicated, with more believing that Casemiro is getting older, although some of United's hierarchy remain staunch supporters. If the Saudi side make an attractive offer for him this summer, then they should send him away without hesitation.
Maguire has regained trust
However, it was a bit of a surprise that McTominay and Maguire, who had previously topped Ten Hag's purge list, were "unexpectedly defeated". After Ten Hag came to Manchester United, he did not appreciate the two, they were both beaten into the cold, and even Maguire was nicknamed "Horse Carrier" by fans because of his slow turn, and was once close to being sent to West Ham United, and McTominay was a substitute for the millennium.
But now the duo have become players that Ten Hag relies on heavily, with Scott McTominay playing a number of bench wonders, scoring crucial goals at crucial moments to save the team, and 10 goals this season, ranking third in the team's scorer list.
Harry Maguire joined Manchester United from Leicester City in the summer of 2019 and he has set a record for the most expensive defender at £80 million. Although Maguire performed well at the beginning of his arrival and quickly became the captain of Manchester United, leading Manchester United to the Premier League runner-up and the Europa League runner-up, Maguire's strong frontal defensive ability and slow turning skills are being targeted by more and more teams in the Premier League.
Coupled with the fact that Manchester United tactically did not give Maguire too much protection to the space behind him, Maguire gradually lost the manager's trust. Especially after Ten Hag took over, Maguire completely lost his main position, playing only 31 games in all competitions last season, setting a new low in appearances in eight seasons, and was ruthlessly stripped of the captain's armband by Ten Hag at the end of the season. Harry Maguire was close to joining West Ham at one point, but was unable to do so for various reasons.
However, in the end, Maguire remained conscientious, his work ethic was beyond reproach, and he regained his place in the main team with his own efforts, and was praised by Ten Hag many times. Ten Hag said in a recent interview that Harry Maguire has made huge progress over the past two seasons and that he is now very proactive and confident that he can lead the team forward with his leadership, both in attack and defence. Ten Hag's statement is undoubtedly a full affirmation of Maguire, and also tells us that opportunities are always reserved for those who are prepared.