‘I don’t understand it’ – Ex-Red left stumped by Ten Hag’s decision to keep ‘big game player’ on bench vs LFC

After Rasmus Hojlund’s injury setback was announced in the summer, Manchester United decided to keep Ethan Wheatley as forward coverage until ‘at least’ January – rather than loaning him out. 

The 18-year-old has yet to be utilised in the first-team this campaign, though, having spent the entirety of last Sunday’s Liverpool defeat watching on from the substitutes’ bench at Old Trafford.

Wheatley has three senior appearances to his name thus far – all of which came in the 2023/2024 Premier League campaign. At youth level, he’s become something of a talisman for the reserves, scoring 14 goals in 30 appearances across all competitions last season.

Such prolific efforts at U18 level included a hat-trick against Liverpool, a brace against Manchester City and a goal against Chelsea. StatmanDave has already categorised the youngster as a ‘big game player’ – something Erik ten Hag is crying out for.

Therefore, Peter Schmeichel was puzzled by the manager’s decision to not grant Wheatley even a short cameo off the bench to try and make an impact over the weekend.

Read more: Erik ten Hag saw transfer plea for midfield ‘engine’ rebuffed by INEOS chiefs, he’s now joined another club

‘All we are saying, is give Wheat a chance’

“When I hear Ten Hag talk about his idea, he talks about he’s got a plan, there’s a structure, and there’s discipline you need to have. Do you see that in the team? I don’t see it. I haven’t seen it for a while,” Schmeichel told Premier League Productions, as cited by the Metro.

“I don’t understand it. We’re 3-0 down, you’ve got a young lad [Wheatley] sat there on the bench who has scored a tonne of goals for the youth teams, we’re 3-0 down, why not put him on?

“He takes [Joshua] Zirkzee off, takes the striker off. Why not give him 10 minutes – what if he scored – what would that do for the next two months for the team, for him? That would give him another option as a manager. Why not try it out?”

“In our time, I was a senior player when you [Paul Scholes] went into the team,” he continued. “We had five young players at the same time in the team. And sometimes, yes, it didn’t work, but when it worked. You need to try it out if you have him on the bench.”