Ten Hag: Slot inherited better team than I did

Erik ten Hag insists Rangers boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst has taken over a more talented squad than he inherited at Manchester United.

A pivotal season under Ten Hag's management awaits.

The Dutchman walked into the Old Trafford hot seat last summer following an underwhelming campaign that saw Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his interim replacement Ralf Rangnick fail to return the club to the summit of English soccer.

Ten Hag enjoyed a fine start to the 2022/23 season, guiding the club to victory in the Carabao Cup and to within touching distance of a second-place finish in the Premier League.

Yet, the former Ajax coach has made no secret of the fact that he believes there is still much work to be done with his squad, which has undergone a significant overhaul since his arrival.

And while Ten Hag has been busy strengthening his own ranks during the summer transfer window, he believes that arch-rivals Liverpool and Manchester City remain some way ahead of United.

He is also adamant that the squad inherited by his former assistant Van Bronckhorst at Ibrox has more quality than the one he had to work with at Old Trafford last season.

Ten Hag on Rangers

"I think Rangers have a better squad overall than Manchester United," Ten Hag said. "Giovanni van Bronckhorst is a very good manager and he has a lot of experience in top-level football.

"He knows how to get the best out of his players and he has a clear philosophy of how he wants to play the game.

"I think Rangers will be a force to be reckoned with in the Champions League this season.".

Van Bronckhorst's men will take on Union Saint-Gilloise in the Champions League third qualifying round next week, with the winners of that tie facing either Monaco or PSV Eindhoven in the play-off round.

Should Rangers make it to the group stage, they will be looking to emulate the achievements of the 2022/23 campaign, when they reached the Europa League final, only to lose to Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties.

Ten Hag, meanwhile, will be hoping to guide United to their first major trophy since 2017, when they won the Europa League under Jose Mourinho.