Sir Alex Ferguson once remarked that while “attack wins you games, defence wins you titles.’ It is a precept which may seem at odds with the cavalier attacking football synonymous with Manchester United under the Scottish manager, but one which underscores the foundational importance an unyielding defence holds. It’s an approach shared by another Premier League manager whose reputation stems from his desire to attack – Jürgen Klopp. Following a 6-0 demolition of Leeds United in February last year, Klopp commented that while happy with the goals, he was even happier with the clean sheet, such is the priority he places upon the defence:

‘Everything we do is based on a top, organised defensive performance. Without that we are just a good team, with that we can be a successful team.’

It appears defence is the foundation upon which consistent performances are built. Teams must establish a strong defensive ability to be able to walk, and then a strong offensive ability to be able to run. Last season, Manchester United were a team which could barely crawl.

2021/22 was a disaster from every conceivable angle, with every possible metric confirming this. One that stands out amidst the sea of unrelenting woe, however, was the team setting a club record for most goals conceded in a Premier League season – 57 to be exact. It equated to the 13^th worst, or best, depending on your emotional disposition, defence in the league. United’s attacking return of a symmetrical 57 goals scored ranked 8^th in the league, as a contrast. An averagely performing attack was inhibited by a below average performing defence. The area to focus improvement on was obvious.

Erik Ten Hag undoubtedly agreed with this assessment, as buttressing United’s leaky defence has been a priority in every facet of his approach thus far. He immediately sought to improve the left-hand side of the defensive unit in the summer; the area of defence his analysis had revealed was the primary source of instability. Lisandro Martinez and Tyrell Malacia were signed for contrasting amounts but similar intentions. Martinez has proven a revelation at LCB, in place of a faltering Harry Maguire, while Malacia has provided excellent cover at LB, reinvigorating Luke Shaw from Burger King’s Customer of the Year into Shawberto Carlos in the process.

Casemiro, signed to play defensive midfielder, has been a behemoth in the mould of former midfield generals who have patrolled the centre of Old Trafford, offering protection to the defence while dictating play further forward. The improved form of the pre-existing Diogo Dalot and, in particular, Raphaël Varane have dramatically improved the right-hand side of the defence as well. Personnel wise Ten Hag has upgraded United defensively, utilising both external and internal options.

This focus on defence has also been a constant throughout Ten Hag’s press conferences. In the aftermath of a 4-1 friendly win over Melbourne in preseason, the manager publicly chastised his defence for folding ‘like a pack of cards’ for the opposition’s opening goal. The defensive gauntlet was laid down early and clearly for the Dutchman’s new squad, and has only continued as the season has progressed. Speaking to MUTV ahead of a clash with Tottenham Hotspur, the Dutchman echoed the sentiments of Ferguson and Klopp, explicating how his team must:

‘…defend with eleven. It’s a team performance, from the front to the back. Really good defending and then you’ll see then that you can achieve clean sheets. It’s a base for every successful team.’

United would win the game 2-0 in a performance that suffocated Spurs defensively as much as offensively; Tottenham’s two shots on target compared to United’s ten illustrates this dominance.

This was followed later by an exciting, but defensively suspect, 4-2 Carabao Cup win against Aston Villa. Refusing to bask in the warmth of victory, Ten Hag was quick to reiterate his absolute approach to defending. ‘In defending, rules are not “but” or “if” — I just demanded them to do it,” said Ten Hag. ‘In offensive positions, they are “principles”, so there is more freedom.’ While the Dutchman is content for his team to attack with individual choice, it is an immutable requirement that they defend collectively and as instructed, operating as a cohesive unit. 7 goals conceded in the last fourteen games demonstrate the effectiveness, but it has required patience to bear fruit.

Following the abysmal opening season performances against Brighton and Brentford, Ten Hag sought to steady a ship, seemingly on the verge of sinking. He established immediate defensive stability through the sacrifice of his attacking principles, adapting the manner in which United set up – the team dropped deeper, played longer, and counter-attacked more. It was a pragmatic decision borne out of necessity; one that appeared at odds with his proactive Dutch philosophy, yet has only served to further enhance his managerial reputation.

United would unexpectedly rally to win the next four games and reverse the overwhelming gloom, beating Liverpool and Arsenal in the process. Without this stabilisation of performance, Ten Hag’s initial experience of English football may have been very different to the success he has enjoyed. The brave decisions off the pitch – removing Cristiano Ronaldo from the team permanently, sending Jadon Sancho to train individually in Holland, or, more recently, dropping Marcus Rashford for being late to a team meeting – were made possible because of the results on it. The Dutch manager has cultivated a strong position because of the undeniable success he’s produced on the pitch. A success engendered by his prioritisation of the defence.

Ten Hag’s new look United team have, therefore, established they are defensively sound enough to walk; the next stage is to display the attacking proficiency to run. Recent results indicate an upward trend in this regard – nine goals with zero conceded in four games – although the quality of opposition must be taken into account. Ten Hag’s vision for United will ultimately be in this more attacking vein however.

Proactive football, with high-energy pressing, which overwhelms the opposition, pinning them in their own half. It can take time to implement this effective pressing strategy, particularly when a team is as alien to the tactic as the United squad. Ten Hag has acknowledged this himself, revealing how his players have experienced ‘a lack of [pressing] in the last years’, and reiterated the patience it requires to implement: ‘..it will not come overnight, it will also take more that weeks, it will take months.’

But this style of football can only be successfully executed with a resolute defensive foundation supporting it. You cannot aggressively commit numbers forward to hunt the ball without being able to deal with the consequences of this imbalance defensively. At the beginning of the season United seemed bereft of this defensive prerequisite, yet Ten Hag’s dogmatic approach has carefully and deliberately made the defence his team’s biggest strength. United can walk, now they must run.

Darragh Fox