Erik ten Hag wanted his Manchester United players to run 13.8 kilometres [8.5 miles] during an extra training session on Sunday – the difference in distance covered by Brentford in their Premier League clash this weekend.
The Dutch manager was left 'horrified' by Saturday's performance at the Gtech Community Stadium, according to reports, and after the game, he made it clear to his players that they had let everyone associated with the club down.
Four first-half goals from Josh Dasilva, Mathias Jensen, Ben Mee and Bryan Mbuemo gifted Thomas Frank's side with a memorable 4-0 win.
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United, meanwhile, sit bottom of the Premier League ladder with a -5 goal difference.
A furious Ten Hag described the club's lacklustre performance against Brentford as "rubbish" in a brutally honest post-match interview.
"It’s quite clear," he told beIN Sports. "It’s rubbish. It’s poor and we need higher standards than that.
"I can bring up several things but that looks like excuses. And that is not there in the top we have to deliver and we didn’t do."
Shortly before that interview, David De Gea made a worrying admission after being asked how the club can improve on their poor start to the season. "I'm not sure, to be honest," he admitted.
In the aftermath of that result, Ten Hag told his Manchester United players to report to Carrington after he decided to cancel Sunday's planned day off.
In fact, the former Ajax boss wanted to make his players run 13.8 kilometres [8.5 miles] during that extra training session, according to Sky reporter Kaveh Solhekol.
Stats suggest Thomas Frank's side ran a total of 109.4km during the game, while United covered 95.6km – a distance that Ten Hag clearly feels is unacceptable.
Ten Hag has already brought five 'expectations' to the training ground since his appointment, including passing forwards rather sideways and backwards, no dressing room cliques and working on fitness levels.
The Dutchman doesn't care for past achievements and medal hauls, either. Instead, his team selection will only be affected by how players are performing in training sessions in the build-up to games.
Last month, Ten Hag showcased his ruthless nature in training during the club's pre-season tour of Australia.
In a clip that went viral on social media, the 52-year-old was seen screaming at his players and at one point, he ripped into youngster Zidane Iqbal for failing to follow instructions.
"Keep the ball on the floor! Zidane! Hey! Keep the ball on the floor," shouted Ten Hag. "F*****g rubbish!"
Thoughts on the reports that Ten Hag wanted his team to run 13.8 kilometres [8.5 miles] during their extra training session on Sunday?
Let us know in the comments.
Topics: Erik Ten Hag, Manchester United, Premier League
Jack Kenmare