“When you watch them play, they fade away” – Mark Lawrenson explains what Ten Hag must do on ‘priority’ to improve Manchester United

Speaking on behalf of 888sport, former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson explained what Erik ten Hag needs to change on a priority basis at Manchester United.

Manchester United ended the season with a 1-0 loss against Patrick Vieira’s Crystal Palace. Erik ten Hag was one of the thousands who attended the game. The Dutch manager has a huge job on his hands if he has to bring Manchester United back to their glory days.

A disastrous season saw the Red Devils finish sixth in the EPL and a number of senior stars are expected to leave in the summer. The club has not followed any particular transfer policy in recent seasons, which has brought forth disastrous consequences in recent times.

Mark Lawrenson said that Erik ten Hag urgently needs to sort out the fitness levels of the Manchester United team (as quoted by the Manchester Evening News):

"They are not super fit right now and when you watch them play, they fade away. So that will be a priority."

"Liverpool and City – who are the yardsticks – work their socks off and if a player doesn’t, he doesn’t get into the team. Giving a minimum of 100 per cent will change how they play but he also has to wheel and deal if he wants them to challenge for the top four next season.”

He added:

"The title is beyond them as Liverpool and City are just streets ahead.”

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What must Manchester United do to compete with Manchester City and Liverpool?

In footballing terms, both Liverpool and City are years ahead of the Red Devils. Both the clubs have smartly improved their teams over multiple transfer windows and have been bearing the fruit of their labor over the last decade.

Jurgen Klopp is set to stay until 2025 while Pep Guardiola’s already super-talented team have added a certain Erling Haaland to their squad. While Erik ten Hag will undoubtedly bring forth a tactical transformation, he will also have to be supported by the hierarchy and be given enough time to bring about a transformation.

As the season showed, United were easily beaten multiple times by teams that simply had an organized gameplan. There is little doubt that there is a lot of work to be done, and it will be a long time before the club can compete with the likes of Manchester City and Liverpool.