Gary Neville accuses Erik ten Hag of 'managing player out of Man Utd'

20 August 2023 , 11:14

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Gary Neville accuses Erik ten Hag of 'managing player out of Man Utd'

Manchester United legend Gary Neville has claimed Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag is making it crystal clear that Scott McTominay is not part of the Dutchman's plans.

The Scotland international was left on the bench as an unused substitute for United's 2-0 defeat by Tottenham in north London on Sunday. Many felt Ten Hag's side were in need of someone of McTominay's skillset in the middle of the pitch to break up play and offer more protection to their backline.

Ten Hag clearly disagreed and forced McTominay to watch on from the sidelines for the entire game. It marks a steep decline for the midfielder, who was once a regular on the team sheet at Old Trafford and has made more than 200 appearances for the club across all competitions.

To make matters worse, McTominay is expected to fall further down the pecking order at United before the transfer window closes. Mason Mount has already been brought in to strengthen the midfield and one of Fiorentina's Sofyan Amrabat or Everton star Amadou Onana are expected to arrive in the next 10 days.

United have also already allowed McTominay's long-term midfield partner Fred to leave this window, with the Brazilian joining Turkish giants Fenerbahce earlier this month.

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It is a damning indictment of how far McTominay's stock has fallen that even with the club one defensive midfielder light, the 26-year-old has still only played two minutes of football across United's opening two Premier League games this term.

That lack of game time is one of the reasons why Neville thinks that Ten Hag is starting to phase the Scotsman out of the fold. While on commentary duty for the Spurs clash, the United legend admitted he felt Casemiro looked "lost" in midfield and the fact McTominay was left on the bench represents his flatlining United career.

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Scott McTominay is struggling for game time at Man United (Ash Donelon/Manchester United)

"What's clear is that Manchester United's midfield needs bolstering," Neville told Sky Sports. "Ten Hag wants a number six who can play alongside Casemiro and, at the moment, the club can't get players out to be able to fund that.

"If they look at the first two weeks, they have to fund it or there will be a big problem. What is clear is that Ten Hag doesn't want to revert back to Scott McTominay.

"With Fernandes on the right, the midfield looks all over the place and the front three doesn't look capable of functioning as one. Does he go back to McTominay? Ten Hag has made five substitutions and not used him. It's almost as if he is managing him out of the club."

Ten Hag's recent remarks over United academy prospect Kobbie Mainoo would suggest even the teenager could soon be above McTominay in the midfield rankings.

"Last year Scott [McTominay] was in that [defensive] role, so he's capable of doing that," the Dutchman told reporters ahead of the Spurs clash. "Kobbie Mainoo is ready to step into that role as well."

Josh O'Brien