"We have to bring them all in" - Ten Hag explains changes to Manchester United XI for Aston Villa clash

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has explained the reasons behind the changes to his starting XI for Sunday's (October 6) clash against Aston Villa. The Red Devils have made four changes to the starting lineup following their previous Premier League 3-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur (September 29).

Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans have been preferred in the central defensive roles over Lisandro Martinez and Matthijs de Ligt. Further up the pitch, Christian Eriksen is starting alongside Kobbie Mainoo in midfield, with Manuel Ugarte dropping to the bench.

While the wide players and full-backs remain the same, Rasmus Hojlund makes his first league start of the campaign over Joshua Zirkzee. Speaking about these changes, the Dutch tactician said (via @mufcMPB):

"Rotation. We have so much games to cover, so we have to bring them all in."

Workload management could certainly be a factor for Manchester United, with the club having to deal with midweek Europa League games as well. They played out an enthralling 3-3 draw with FC Porto on Thursday (October 3).

Regardless of the number of games, the pressure on Ten Hag seems to be mounting. His team has been poor in the league so far, having managed just seven points in their first six matches. As a result, they sit in 14th place.

That being said, Aston Villa will prove to be a tricky opponent. Unai Emery and Co. have enjoyed a good start to the season and are placed fifth in the standings with 13 points. They've got the chance to close the gap between themselves and leaders Liverpool to two points by the end of this matchweek.

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Harry Maguire calls for consistency from his Manchester United team

Harry Maguire

Manchester United defender Harry Maguire believes that the players must take more responsibility for the club's performances over pointing the finger at the manager.

The former Leicester City man has also asked for more consistency and believes that his side can beat any team on their day. He was quoted by BBC Sport ahead of the Aston Villa match:

"We've proven over the last couple of seasons with the manager that we can beat anybody when we perform. But the problem has been consistency, and we need to start showing that."

After the tie against Aston Villa, Manchester United will have time to regroup during the international break. Once that's completed, they face Brentford in the league at Old Trafford on October 19.