Ten Hag must learn from Mourinho to ensure Man United's Carabao Cup win is just the start

"We privation more. My declaration is long, truthful hopefully I tin triumph thing more."

These words dependable a batch similar thing Erik 10 Hag could person said successful the aftermath of Manchester United's Carabao Cup last triumph against Newcastle connected Sunday, but they beryllium to Jose Mourinho, who had been sat successful the aforesaid spot successful the Wembley quality league precisely six years earlier.

Like Ten Hag, Mourinho lifted the League Cup successful his archetypal play arsenic manager astatine Old Trafford and past spoke astir wanting more. There was much to travel from Mourinho successful the elongated vase of the UEFA Europa League 3 months later, but a small implicit a twelvemonth aft that, Mourinho was gone, sacked successful December 2018 pursuing a bid of disagreements with the committee implicit transfers and a tally of miserable results.

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The 2017 League Cup, secured with a 3-2 triumph implicit Southampton, wasn't the level it was expected to be, and it has since been consigned to past arsenic a uncommon bully time during the post-Sir Alex Ferguson slump. Ferguson utilized the cupful competitions -- peculiarly occurrence successful the FA Cup successful 1990 and the League Cup successful 2006 -- to trigger periods of sustained success. The question for Ten Hag is simple: however volition his 2023 League Cup triumph beryllium remembered?

It's casual with the payment of hindsight but determination were signs, adjacent during the celebrations astatine Wembley successful 2017, that each was not good with Mourinho astatine United. In fact, the 2nd question successful his winners' quality league suggested arsenic much.

"Jose," it started, "for idiosyncratic who has conscionable won a trophy, you don't look hugely exuberant oregon happy."

"I americium precise happy," came Mourinho's reply, delivered portion wearing the look of a antheral who was thing but. "I americium precise happy. It's important for the fans and for the players. I ever effort to enactment myself successful a secondary position, but the world is that it's besides important for me. It's a relief."

The quality successful Ten Hag's demeanour connected Sunday could not person been much different. After dancing connected the transportation with Antony and Lisandro Martinez, helium sat down for his quality league wearing a wide grin. He said broadly akin things to what Mourinho had said six years earlier -- "If we support going and moving past we tin triumph adjacent more" -- but helium was successful a buoyant-enough temper to marque a joke, arsenic helium near having astir forgotten to instrumentality the trophy with him.

Ten Hag has cracked down connected squad subject since taking implicit past summer, but helium has besides ensured helium has built a enslaved with his players and the fans, thing it seemed Mourinho ever struggled to do.

In enactment with Carabao Cup rules, clubs bash not person to clasp prematch quality conferences for immoderate circular anterior to the semifinals and for the archetypal clip this season, United utilized the clip to invitation supporters to travel to the grooming basal astatine Carrington and enactment their ain questions to Ten Hag. Fans from each implicit the satellite took up the accidental and each time, it went down well.

Mourinho mightiness person understood his task astatine Old Trafford, but Ten Hag, it seems, understands the club.

After winning the League Cup and the Europa League successful his archetypal season, Mourinho finished 2nd successful the Premier League successful his 2nd twelvemonth and mislaid successful the FA Cup last to Chelsea. It was astatine that point, however, that his reign began to unravel. He had already mislaid patience with prima subordinate Paul Pogba and during the summertime of 2018, helium became progressively frustrated by the club's transportation business.

Having decided helium wanted to determination connected Anthony Martial, Mourinho was convinced the thought was blocked due to the fact that the French guardant was nine co-chairman Joel Glazer's favourite player. Mourinho besides asked to motion a caller centre-back, but was told that targets Harry Maguire and Jerome Boateng were excessively costly and excessively aged and injury-prone, respectively. Transfers tin beryllium contentious for immoderate manager and Ten Hag volition person to beryllium cautious successful the mode helium navigates the summertime model truthful arsenic not to autumn into the aforesaid trap arsenic Mourinho.

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Ten Hag astir forgets to cod the Carabao Cup trophy

Manchester United manager Erik 10 Hag is reminded by reporters to bring the Carabao Cup with him astatine the extremity of his property conference.

After making specified a immense measurement guardant successful his archetypal season, determination volition beryllium an anticipation for United to marque a genuine rubric situation and the Dutchman volition rather rightly privation a squad susceptible of delivering. Ten Hag has not been shy successful pushing for much players -- winger Antony past summer, guardant Wout Weghorst and midfielder Marcel Sabitzer successful January -- and volition bash truthful again, but arsenic Mourinho learned to his cost, determination tin beryllium information erstwhile you overstep the mark.

Because of fiscal just play concerns, United are planning a summertime walk of betwixt £100m and £200m, and it volition beryllium shot manager John Murtough's occupation to equilibrium Ten Hag's demands with the club's fiscal constraints. A caller striker, successful particular, is captious if United are going to scope the adjacent level.

Mourinho thought the League Cup would supply a archetypal sensation of occurrence for a squad destined for bigger and amended things and the fans astatine Wembley that time astir apt thought the same. That it didn't provides an apt reminder for Ten Hag -- not that helium needs 1 -- that there's enactment to bash to implicit his Old Trafford gyration and get United backmost to the apical array successful some England and Europe.

Mourinho's League Cup turned retired to beryllium thing much than a little highlight. Ten Hag wants his to beryllium the commencement of a bid of them.