Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag makes audacious Luke Shaw claim completely at odds with Mourinho | Football | Sport

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Erik ten Hag has claimed that Luke Shaw is the ‘best left-back in the world’ but is still paying the price of the horrific leg injury he suffered back in 2015. Shaw is facing a race against time to be fit for the Euros after missing the last three months of the season for Manchester United and making just 12 league appearances all season.

The former Southampton ace was considered one of the country’s best young players when he joined United a decade ago but has seen his career hampered by injury. He suffered a double leg break in a Champions League game at PSV Eindhoven in 2015 which kept him out of action for 11 months.

Shaw was regularly berated for his fitness by former United boss Jose Mourinho, who made it clear that he was not fond of working with the defender at Old Trafford. Ten Hag, however, believes that Shaw’s injury struggles have prevented him from being recognised as a world-leading player in his position.

“Shaw is the best left-back in the world, he is so good,” said Ten Hag. “But he had a very serious injury at the beginning of his career. As a result, he will never be able to play 60 games in a year.”

Ten Hag’s view of Shaw is completely at odds with that of Mourinho, who issued a number of jibes about the defender’s weight and physical fitness during his time in charge of United. He was also highly critical of Shaw’s football intelligence, claiming after one lacklustre performance that he had been making every decision from the touchline.

“He had a good performance but it was his body with my brain,” said Mourinho after United played out a 1-1 draw with Everton in 2017. “He was in front of me and I was making every decision for him.”

Mourinho also publicly questioned Shaw’s attitude after he missed a win over Swansea City due to an injury, saying after the match: “There is a difference between the brave, who want to be there at any cost, and the ones for whom a little pain can make a difference.”

It seems that Shaw will continue to receive the backing of Ten Hag if the Dutchman keeps his job at United next season. He will be hoping to return to full fitness and play as many games as possible when the new campaign gets underway, but his immediate focus will be ensuring that he is in a condition to represent England at this summer’s Euros.



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