Manchester United stars have gained a reputation for throwing their manager under the bus when times are tough, and it seems they are up to their old tricks again.
The Red Devils have had a turbulent start to the season, and while results had somewhat improved prior to the international break, their performances have not instilled much hope in their supporters.
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As club football prepares to get underway once more, the Manchester giants are sitting sixth on the Premier League table and, at first glance, their current form suggests that they're one of the best teams in the league at the moment, after winning four of their past five matches and their only loss coming in a 3-0 derby defeat to fierce rivals Manchester City.
When it comes to a club like United, you always have to look at the bigger picture. They were knocked out of the Carabao Cup, as reigning champions, by Newcastle United after another 3-0 defeat just days after being totally outclassed by the Citizens.
The side's UEFA Champions League campaign has been something the players and coaching staff would love to forget, after losing three of the four games they have played thus far. They now need to win their next two matches, against Galatasaray away and Bayern Munich at home, to ensure their hopes of progressing to the next round of the tournament are kept alive.
Performances have been horrible, and have even prompted the fans to tell them to "play like you mean it".
Now, however, it seems that instead of taking the blame, they have deflected it elsewhere. According to the Daily Telegraph, the club's senior players are pointing their fingers at Erik ten Hag and the pre-season tour that saw them play eight fixtures in 12 days, saying that it left them feeling overworked and tired at the beginning of the campaign and insinuating that it caused the side's current injury crisis.
The main criticism levelled at the players remains the same it has been under previous managers in recent times such as Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and Ralf Rangnick, and that is that the players are playing as if they could not be bothered to put in the hard yards.
With the way the game has evolved, it has become imperative to increase the distance they run during a match to ensure they perform in all areas of the game, whether it be pressing from the front to try and win possession back higher up the pitch, breaking on a counter-attack, or even rushing back to help the team get back into a defensive structure. This does not seem to have been the case with this side. There have been occasions this season when the Red Devils looked all too vulnerable when defending an opposition break, with midfielders failing to track runs made into the box by rival players and by the time the cut-back comes in from the by-line, that player is free to have a shot at goal.
The lack of visible desire to close that player down is enough to upset those watching from the stands whether they are fans, coaching staff or former players. It's the opposite of what "The United Way" promotes: A desire to do anything to win. With players using being tired as an excuse for not playing well, it makes one question whether they are mentally fit to play at Old Trafford.
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