How Erik ten Hag has managed to stop Man United players picking up the most common injury

Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag has been credited with the Red Devils’ resurgence this term. But there is one impressive feature of his tenure that has been largely overlooked.

In his first full season since taking over from interim head coach Ralf Rangnick in May 2022, Ten Hag has restored the red half of Manchester to something akin to its former glory.

Currently third in the Premier League and having lifted the Carabao Cup at the end of February, the 53-year-old former Ajax boss has helped steer United to the last eight of the Europa League and the semi-finals of the FA Cup.

And with the impact of new signings like Casemiro, as well as the impressive form of long-serving players such as Marcus Rashford, United are on course for what could be an impressive treble-winning campaign.

However, fighting for silverware on so many fronts, not to mention the battle to secure a top four finish, means that United will play a minimum of 61 competitive fixtures this term. It will be one of only five times in their history that the club has played more than 60 matches in a single season.

And should they reach the finals of both the FA Cup and Europa League, that tally will climb to 65 games — the second most in any season in United’s history.

Inevitably, the question over player fitness levels and potential injuries has been raised with United set to play a possible 19 games over the nine weeks left of the season.

In April alone, they will play nine times, in part, due to the schedule changes as a result of the FIFA World Cup being played during the winter months for the first time ever.

However, despite the intense schedule of games, the number of hamstring and soft tissue injuries at United has actually reduced under Ten Hag.

And it’s a careful attention to the physical workload of the squad that has played a key role in reducing that number.

Utilising a team of fitness experts and sports scientists, the players at United are monitored across several different data sets. In particular, they are checked against sprint metres (i.e. when a player runs faster than 28km/h) with the aim being to share the load of high-intensity work throughout training schedules, as too many sprints on too many days is likely to bring about injuries.

One anonymous source speaking to The Athletic said: “Ten Hag understands numbers. He’s clever. He’s from a wealthy background — (people) who have been successful using numbers in business.”

Responding to questions concerning their intense fixture list, the United boss himself added: “We don’t need rest. When the players come back (from the international break), we keep the rhythm. Players like to play. We have the energy and a good squad. We will rotate but we have to go from game to game and put the best XI on the pitch.”

Topics: Erik Ten Hag, Manchester United, Premier League, England, Football

George Nash