Ten Hag SLAMMED for treatment of Man Utd youth player

Carlo Garganese

• 15 Oct 2023 16:22 BST
• 3 min read

Erik ten Hag has been slammed for his treatment of young Manchester United star Hannibal Mejbri.

The 20-year-old has been one of the few positive stories in an otherwise disastrous start to the season for Man Utd.

The midfielder has made five appearances, scoring against Brighton and generally shining when he had been on the pitch.

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Mejbri got his chance amidst an injury crisis and Ten Hag has been blasted by Tim Sherwood for relegating the youngster as soon as the senior players were fit again.

What did Sherwood say?

"He [Ten Hag] seems to pick superstars. £50m, £70m, £100m players – he throws them onto the pitch and hopes one of them does something to get him out the mire,” Sherwood told Sky Sports.

"That is what has happened. He’s had to go to a kid in the academy to do that for him now. Hannibal got into that side. Say what you want about him and people will say, ‘He’s not a £100m player, he’s not this or that’ – but he went to Birmingham, worked hard on loan there, he came back and for me, he was Man of the Match in a couple games.

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"But as soon as someone else is fit, he is out the door. Sit on the bench, son. Someone else comes in and strolls around the pitch, doesn’t want to run around or get the ball back. It’s up to the manager to put the cocktail together."

Sherwood believed Hannibal can help a Man Utd team climb up the table, as they currently sit 10th after a horrible start to the campaign.

The Red Devils have lost six of their opening 11 matches in all competitions, including both of their first two Champions League games.