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It is now a story that has been told many times, especially under Erik ten Hag, but it even precedes him.
Manchester United players looked shaken and out of belief in front of a rabid crowd, shoulders slumped, frustrations palpable, and another manager staring into the abyss.
It felt like that against Newcastle as the Toons swept aside United as the Red Devils put forward a display that was barely an inconvenience for Newcastle.
Paul Scholes questioned the players’ laziness, even going as far as to say that Marcus Rashford was causing more harm to the team than good.
Now, Alan Shearer has struck a similar tone.
Speaking on BBC’s Match of the Day, he questioned the strength of characters in the United dressing room, especially in the face of adversity.
He said United have “too many bad eggs, too many players with bad attitude”.
Just like Scholes, he made an example out of Rashford, in whom the change from when things are going his way and when they aren’t is jarring to see.
Shearer said that Rashford “didn’t look at it at all, didn’t look interested” and “it happened so many times”.
Even the lackadaisical Anthony Martial was ineffective and had a bust-up with Erik ten Hag when asked to pick up his intensity.
The Newcastle legend said that it’s easy to play at your best when things are going your way and you get on the ball to make things happen.
However, when the need of the hour is to suffer and “roll your sleeve up”, this United team doesn’t have the characters to do it.
It is not the first time that this allegation has been levelled at United but what will worry Ten Hag the most is that despite his signing almost 13 players since his arrival, those issues remain.
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