"Everyone was raring to go" on Erik ten Hag's first week of Manchester United training.
Manchester United players returned to Carrington for their first meetings with new manager Erik ten Hag, with sources at the training ground stating that "everyone was raring to go."
Manchester United players were all smiles as they returned for pre-season training and the start of the Erik ten Hag era yesterday.
It remains to be seen whether they will still be smiling in a few weeks, as ten Hag has promised to put United's players through a grueling pre-season regime to ensure they are in peak condition. David De Gea, Victor Lindelof, Anthony Martial, Donny van de Beek, Jadon Sancho, and young sensation Alejandro Garnacho were among the players who reported for duty and their first face-to-face meeting with their new manager.
Ten Hag arrived at United's Carrington training facility at 8 a.m., two hours before his players were scheduled to return for pre-season after a four-week summer break. The 52-year-old Dutchman was escorted into the training ground by security personnel, becoming United's fifth permanent manager since Sir Alex Ferguson stepped down in 2013.
Ten Hag introduced himself and outlined his approach to the combined group of 15 first-team players and Under-21 squad members at the start of an afternoon training session.
He was joined by Ajax assistant Mitchell van der Gaag and former England manager Steve McClaren, who collaborated with Ferguson at United from 1999 to 2001.
United's players, including some who arrived before 9 a.m., spent more than two hours on the athletic fields, with the lengthy ball additional hour until after 4 p.m.
"There was a real energy about the place," a training ground source said. Everyone was pumped to get started.
Erik was buzzing around the practice field, meeting a lot of people before heading to training in the afternoon.
"There's always a certain amount of routine on the first day back, with fitness and health checks, but in the afternoon they were out on the grass doing ball work."
Although yesterday was his first day on the training ground with the players, Ten Hag has been hard at work behind the scenes since his appointment was announced on April 22.
Ten Hag's focus immediately shifted to United after guiding Ajax to a third successive Dutch league title, working in tandem with football director John Murtough on incomings and outgoings.
Ten Hag also held regular contact with United's players via Zoom last month in an attempt to establish some early familiarity, and he also ordered a full dossier on each squad member before being introduced.
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