Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag insists players are 'behind' him amid reports of unrest

Erik ten Hag insists he has the backing of his Manchester United squad after reports on Tuesday claimed a group of players are becoming disillusioned with their manager.

It has been suggested the Dutchman is staring at a dressing-room revolt with several players said to be unhappy with their current plight.

United took the decision to ban four media organisations from Tuesday's press conference ahead of the visit of Chelsea in the Premier League on Wednesday, with the club claiming they had not been given right of reply to negative stories.

The Red Devils have made an indifferent start to the season, sitting seventh in the table after a 1-0 loss to Newcastle on Saturday and are also on the brink of a premature exit from the UEFA Champions League.

“I always listen to my players and I always give them opportunities to tell, if the players have a different opinion of course I will listen,” he said.

“But they haven’t told me – or maybe one or two. But it is about in general: the majority, they want to play like this – proactive, dynamic, brave, that is what they want.

“You can see the players are behind it because of the performances against Everton and Galatasaray. Do you think we can make the goals we did against Everton if the players don’t embrace it? I am sure [the players are behind me].

“You can see for instance the comeback against Brentford, the Burnley game, the Fulham game. You can see you can’t play such great football as we did lately if there is no unity.

“We are not robots. If you play three games in six days, tough games. By the end the fatigue can be an issue, never an excuse, but it is there. Against Galatasaray, against Everton we played very well. Against Newcastle we were not happy with our performance."

Ten Hag was pressed on whether there is a sense of disorder around the club, but he responded: "Not in the dressing room. There are a lot of rumours about strategic review [carried out internally], but it is not that we get distracted by it.

"We are on a journey, a route, we know we are still in transition but we are in the right direction, you see it how we construct a team, develop it, the team is progressing, how young players [are] coming in and you see the potential how they can contribute to a very successful Manchester United for the future.”

After Chelsea, United host Bournemouth on Saturday and three days later entertain Bayern Munich in their final Champions League Group C game - live on TNT Sports - knowing only a win will keep their hopes of progressing in the tournament alive.

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