Erik ten Hag has revealed that INEOS turned down his advice on how to improve their data department after hinting Manchester United didn't give him the tools to be successful

Former Manchester United head coach Erik ten Hag has aimed a fresh dig at INEOS and claimed he offered them advice to improve their data apartment, but they declined.

Ten Hag, who took charge of United in May 2022, was sacked by INEOS chiefs in November 2024 following a difficult start to the season which included three wins from their first nine Premier League matches. The Dutchman was thought to be 'completely devastated' by United's decision to dismiss him, just a matter of months after he had won the FA Cup and signed a new two-year contract at Old Trafford.

However, despite last season's third-place finish under Michael Carrick, it's fair to say United have not made much progress since Ten Hag left and INEOS joined the club back in February 2024. Sir Jim Ratcliffe's INEOS group arrived after buying a 27.7 per cent stake in United and they all-but immediately assumed full control of men's and women's football operations, academies, and received board seats alongside the Glazers.

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When INEOS first moved to United, Ten Hag offered them advice on how to improve the club's data department, as he tried to bring better players to the Reds. However, when speaking to The Athletic, the now-FC Twente director has revealed INEOS rejected his offer.

"Data changed the whole world, and now it's coming, AI, and every organisation has to take this on board," Ten Hag said. "I think United miss some aspects. The moment I came in, they were starting. For instance, data was already a long time on board at Ajax.

"A manager should get, by the end, all the information. You need others in a club to collect all the information and make everything ready to make final decisions. Top organisations innovate continually and they’re actually driving the innovations.

"I offered my knowledge and abilities to INEOS to help them to construct, but they were of the opinion that they knew already everything. They were convinced of, say, the philosophy, the strategy, the work methods. But they came from petrochemicals, from Formula 1, from cycling. Top football demands something totally different."

Ten Hag added: "Seven points where I judge the player. Technical ability, for me, is most important. Second is game intelligence and cognition. Third, you need athleticism, then lifestyle. Determination. Resilience and robustness to play every third day. And then we want to be always offensive.

"For instance, when I came to United, we didn't have the scoring ability to be in the top four. I will not say football is mathematics, but a bit of logic is in it. For us at Twente, we need 70 goals if you want to be in fourth position. When you want to win the Premier League, you need 85, 90 goals.

"I use this every day, so it should not be a document in a drawer. That is winning culture, if we match what we described. We use a lot of data to see new signings match our style of play."