Former Manchester United midfielder Fred (Picture: AP)
Former Manchester United midfielder Fred is clearly not a fan of former boss Erik ten Hag, labelling the Dutchman as a ‘piece of crap’ when it came to squad management.
Fred was signed by United in 2018 from Shakhtar Donetsk and spent five seasons at Old Trafford.
The Brazilian worked under the likes of Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and spent one season under the tutelage of Ten Hag before leaving for Fenerbahce in 2023.
In fact, Ten Hag did not last much longer than the midfielder, winning the FA Cup at the end of the following season to salvage his job before being sacked after a dismal start to the 2024/25 season.
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And while Fred was keen to praise Ten Hag’s tactical nous, he clearly felt the Dutchman’s man-management skills left something to be desired.
‘Ten Hag was tactically very good, but with the group he was a piece of crap,’ he said on the Charla Podcast.
‘He argued with everyone. He argued with me, with Cristiano [Ronaldo], with Casemiro, with Rashford … He wouldn’t put me in to play, sometimes it got stressful.
Fred spent one season under Erik ten Hag’s tutelage (Picture: Retuers)
‘[With Ten Hag] Only his Dutch players played. A clique-ridden coach. But, tactically, one of the best I’ve ever worked with.
‘He wanted the team to run, but Cristiano [was already] older. He took Cristiano out [of the starting lineup], and then there was a falling out.’
Asked about the other managers he played under at United, Fred added: ‘Solskjaer was good with the group, but he was helped [in training] by the assistants. He united the group.’
‘Mourinho’s a great bloke, he is funny. I’ve just been with him at Fenerbahçe; he brought me to United.
‘Before [Carlo] Ancelotti came along, his name was being mentioned for the national team [Brazil].
‘So I’d show him the rumours and he’d say: ‘F*** off, mate. I’m not going anywhere. I’m going to manage my club here.’ A really decent bloke.’
After his dismissal from United, Ten Hag spent an ill-fated 62 days as Bayer Leverkusen boss before being sacked. He is now working as technical director of Eredivisie club Twente.
