Erik ten Hag: Despite the criticism Man United's manager requires a run of seven games in 22 days following the international break.

Erik ten Hag is under more strain after Manchester United's 3-0 loss to Liverpool at Old Trafford; the Red Devils play seven games in 22 days between the September and October international vacations. For the head coach to get the season off to a good start,

Erik ten Hag is already under a lot of strain following the club's lowest-ever Premier League result of ninth the previous season.

We find out what the Dutchman needs from Manchester United's upcoming slate of games following the international break in order to turn things around as the dust settles on the most recent setback.

What lies next for United?

Between the end of the September international break and the beginning of the October break, United has seven games scheduled over a 22-day period.

On Saturday, September 14, it kicks off early against recently promoted Southampton. After losing their first three games, Russell Martin's team is currently in second place. Their lone goal this season came in stoppage time during Saturday's 3-1 loss to Brentford.

With their Europa League campaign beginning and four of the seven games—including three of the four Premier League matches—taking place away from home, there will also be a lot of traveling involved.


On Tuesday, September 17, United will host League One Barnsley at Old Trafford for the Carabao Cup third round. On Saturday, September 21, United will travel to Crystal Palace for another Premier League match, which will be televised live on Sky Sports.

On Wednesday, September 25, they play Twente at home to begin their Europa League campaign. On Sunday, September 29, they face Ange Postecoglou's Tottenham in the Premier League, live on Sky Sports, and on Thursday, October 3, they travel to Porto.

On October 6, they play their last game before the international break in October, a difficult one against Unai Emery's Aston Villa at Villa Park.

How do their matches in the Premier League compare?
It seems like a rather difficult set of fixtures on paper.

Just six Premier League teams—Manchester City, Tottenham, Fulham, Nottingham Forest, Wolves, and Brentford—have more challenging games than United between international breaks, according to last season's final places.

It's also important to consider United's performance in those similar games previous season. Of course, they did not play Southampton, but in May, they were crushed 4-0 at Selhurst Park by Palace, who had previously in the season defeated them 1-0 at Old Trafford.

The home match between Ten Hag's team and Tottenham last season concluded in a 2-2 draw in January. Ten Hag's team had previously lost 2-0 to Ange Postecoglou's team at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in August.


They performed better against Aston Villa, winning 2-1 at Villa Park in February of the previous season thanks to a late strike by Scott McTominay. However, Ten Hag will need to do better than he did last year in order to relieve some of the strain over the three games and the trip to the Saints.

Cups can only offer so much comfort.

Ten Hag keeps citing his stat that since taking over at Old Trafford, he has won more titles in England than any other player, only surpassed by Pep Guardiola of Manchester City.



Undoubtedly, the club's trophy victories—the FA Cup final victory over Manchester City at Wembley last season and the Carabao Cup final victory over Newcastle in 2023—were highlights for the supporters after five seasons without a championship.

This season, Ten Hag will be looking to the cup events to offer more solace, beginning following the international break.

United should have an easy path to the fourth round after receiving a favorable Carabao Cup matchup against Barnsley. After the failure of the previous season's Champions League campaign, a strong start in the Europa League will also be crucial.

But he can only advance so far in the cups. It is unlikely that INEOS will make it to the cup finals later in the season if United's Premier League performance does not improve, especially considering that they were scouting other managers in the summer.