Page 31 - BONDIA ARUBA AUG 16 2022

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sports Diamars 16 augustus 2022

Ten Hag discovering the mess he has inherited at Man United

(AP) – Maybe Ralf Rang- up by United supporters at
nick was right, after all. Brentford calling for the de-
parture of the Glazer family,
Maybe Manchester United the club's owners. "Time 2
does require soccer's equiva- Go. Glazers Out" read one,
lent of "open-heart surgery" and the atmosphere prom-
to fix the glut of issues cur- ises to be toxic when United
rently afflicting England's returns to Old Trafford next
biggest club. week for its third match of
the season.
That was the blunt assess-
ment offered in April by That is on Monday against
Rangnick, United's interim fierce rival Liverpool, which
manager at the time, as he scored nine goals against
prepared to hand over the United across two games last
coaching reins to Erik ten season in humiliatingly one-
Hag ahead of this season. sided meetings. The previous
And it's taken just two pain- season, a protest against the
ful Premier League games for Glazer family forced the un-
Ten Hag to understand quite precedented postponement
the mess he has joined. of the Premier League game
against Liverpool at Old
Underperforming and — in Trafford after the stadium
certain cases — unmotivat- was stormed and thousands
ed players. An imbalanced, his back, unable to believe "false nine" in the 2-1 home despite a summer-long pur- more supporters blocked ac-
poorly assembled squad. A what had transpired. loss to Brighton on the suit of the Barcelona mid- cess into the venue as they
faltering recruitment team Ten Hag didn't flinch as a opening weekend, then as a fielder and still must rely on demanded the Americans —
unable to bring in its primary moody-looking Cristiano deep-lying midfielder against the underwhelming Fred and buyers in 2005 in a leveraged
targets. American owners Ronaldo walked past, or as he Brentford? Scott McTominay. takeover — sell the club.
increasingly loathed by the was serenaded with chants of Was Lisandro Martinez, a
fans. "You're getting sacked in the short center back in modern- Indeed, upgrades are needed Lose to Liverpool and that
morning" from Brentford day terms, the wisest pur- all over the team, especially would mean United opening
Ten Hag, meanwhile, is add- supporters. chase for nearly $58 million in attack with uncertainty still the season with three straight
ing to his own problems with Sunday was supposed to be considering the renowned swirling around Ronaldo, defeats. The last Ajax coach
some questionable decision- a day off for United's play- physicality of the Premier who pushed for a move away to join a Premier League
making in his first weeks in ers but Ten Hag insisted League? Exposed against during the offseason and — team was Frank De Boer,
English soccer. they come in for training, Brentford, he didn't make it despite his renowned goal- who lost his first four match-
with British broadcaster Sky out for the second half. scoring prowess — doesn't es in charge of Crystal Palace
"Rubbish" was one of the Sports reporting that the have the mobility to suit a and was promptly fired after
words the Dutchman used manager wanted to make his Why is Harry Maguire, clear- typical Ten Hag-managed the team struggled to adapt to
to describe United's abysmal players run 13.8 kilometers, ly lacking in self-confidence team. his tactics and demands.
performance in its 4-0 loss at matching the difference in on the field, still United's
Brentford on Saturday that total distance the two teams captain when he shouldn't With Anthony Martial in- The fear is that Ten Hag sim-
marked a new low point in ran during Saturday's match. really be assured of a starting jured, Ronaldo is United's ply does not have the players
the club's recent history. spot? only out-and-out striker and to fit his style. Or, like in the
These are still very early Then again, Ten Hag hasn't played the full game against case of Martinez, he has the
Moments after the final days in the Ten Hag era but been helped by those above Brentford even though he wrong player in a crucial po-
whistle at Brentford Com- the problems are mounting, him. How has United gone cannot have been match- sition.
munity Stadium, as the joy- some of them of the Dutch- into the new season without sharp. Tellingly, he left the Will United hold its nerve
ous home fans celebrated man's making. a new holding midfielder, a field without even looking at if the losing streak contin-
one of their team's best ever position the team has desper- Ten Hag. ues? Ten Hag surely deserves
results, Ten Hag was seen Why, for example, was Chris- ately needed to upgrade for some time but the early signs
standing motionless on the tian Eriksen — a midfield years? United looks likely to Also notable Saturday were are of a club already in a cri-
touchline, both arms behind playmaker — deployed as a miss out on Frenkie de Jong some of the banners held sis.

Serena Williams' Cincinnati

opener pushed back to

Tuesday

(AP) — Serena Williams' Williams has said she wants
opening match in the to have another child and
Western & Southern Open pursue business interests.
has been rescheduled The 23-time Grand Slam
from Monday to Tuesday. champion has not said what
her last event will be, but has
The 40-year-old Williams, made it sound as if her final
preparing to retire, is set to farewell will come at the U.S.
face 19-year-old Emma Ra- Open, which begins Aug. 29
ducanu, the defending U.S. in New York.
Open champion. A spokes-
man for the tournament said Williams lost 6-2, 6-4 to Be-
the change was "on account linda Bencic on Wednesday
of a number of factors related night in Toronto in her first
to scheduling." match since she elaborated
on her future plans.