Erik ten Hag stressed the importance of opportunities such as Saturday’s Emirates FA Cup final against Manchester City when he addressed the media this week.
The Dutchman has come under intense scrutiny throughout the 2023/24 season, but the Manchester United boss may be afforded one final chance to spare his own blushes on Saturday when they take on the Cityzens at Wembley Stadium.
A 15:00 BST kickoff under the arch is “an opportunity,” stressed Erik ten Hag, who admitted that “it will never be easy – but we have to go for it, and we will go for it.”
“We have to believe it as we did last season and as we know, often against good opponents, we play our best football and I expect us to do this on Saturday.”
Embed from Getty ImagesReflecting on perceived underperformance this season, the 54-year old Haaksbergen native acknowledged that “it’s all about trophies, and we have a huge opportunity to win a trophy. In the last 10 years [there have been] not many trophies in this club, but we have an opportunity to win two trophies in two years.”
“We have to believe it as we did last season and as we know, often against good opponents, we play our best football and I expect us to do this on Saturday,” he added, going on to comment that his Manchester United side were “very competitive until a VAR decision at Old Trafford” when the two sides met earlier this season.
FromTheSpot’s extensive coverage of the 2023/24 Emirates FA Cup will continue throughout the weekend.