Rio Ferdinand notices Erik ten Hag's frustration despite dramatic Man Utd win

02 February 2024 , 10:36

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Rio Ferdinand, former English footballer and current television pundit, looks on prior to the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester United (Image: Naomi Baker)

Rio Ferdinand has warned Erik ten Hag he needs to "sort out" Manchester United's game management after their late collapse against Wolves almost cost them a victory.

The Red Devils gave up a 3-1 lead when Max Kilman and Pedro Neto levelled the scoreline at Molineux with 95 minutes on the clock. Kobbie Mainoo's 97th-minute equaliser ensured the visitors came away with a dramatic victory and spared United blushes after what had been a dominant performance.

But ex-United defender Ferdinand believes his old club showed a startling lack of concentration to allow Wolves back into the game having also led 2-0 following goals from Marcus Rashford and Rasmus Hojlund. The latter admitted he was furious on the bench following Neto's goal.

Ferdinand suggested Ten Hag's post-match interview was evidence of the Dutchman's own frustrations at his side's performance, despite praising his team for rescuing a win. "Manchester United will have to sort this out," Ferdinand said. "They have to be concentrated at these stages of the game.

"They were 2-0 up and cruising at this stage of the game and you could see the frustration in the interview from Erik ten Hag, they have to manage those moments and get through those sticky moments away from home - they didn’t do that well enough today."

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Ten Hag believes the late win was a big moment for his side. The 54-year-old was pleased to see the resilience shown by youngster Mainoo, but believes that the experience in his team should see them manage games more efficiently.

Erik ten Hag during the match between Wolves and Manchester United (2024 Marc Atkins)

He told TNT Sports: "It’s massive. This match had a lot of signs. But, let’s first take the positives, we dictated the game for the first hour and we should have been up three or four nil. At the end, we were naive in the way we conceded the goals, but we showed resilience, especially Kobbie Mainoo - it was a great goal.

"We should do better and there were also times earlier in the season where we were totally dominant and gave it away. We should take more responsibility on the pitch in those moments. We have so much experience and we should be able to manage that."

Scott Trotter