Erik ten Hag knew the size of the task he was inheriting prior to accepting the Manchester United job.
Despite being one of the heaviest spenders in world football, the gap between them and the best teams both at home and abroad has been steadily widening in recent years. That was especially apparent last season, where United had their worst campaign of the Premier League era.
Reversing that trend will not be easy. Not only will results on the pitch need to be greatly improved, but the dynamic within the squad also requires correcting.
There is a sense that the players at Old Trafford have wielded far too much power over the last number of years, especially under Ole Gunner Solskjaer. The Norwegian took somewhat of a laissez faire approach towards man management, being primarily concerned with keeping the players happy as opposed to pushing them. As a result, standards slipped.
The new manager has now been taking steps to correct that issue.
Erik ten Hag introduces strict rules at Manchester United
The Mirror are reporting that Erik ten Hag has already taken steps towards addressing some of the issues inside the Manchester United dressing room, introducing five strict new rules to ensure tighten up the disciplinary issues within the squad.
The first of those involves leaks from the dressing room, with players being told that they will be exiled by the manager if they are found to spreading information from inside the club. That was a major issue last season, with new stories seemingly emerging about troubles inside Old Trafford on a weekly basis. Players will now be dropped if they are late to any team meetings or trainings sessions, without exception.
Secondly, playing staff will not be permitted to drink alcohol on the week of a game.
Thirdly, the Dutchman has said that all players must eat the same meals provided by a club chef and are no longer allowed to only eat food provided by their own personal cooks. He has also altered the menu at the club's training ground to include more fish and fresh vegetables, things that had apparently been previously been lacking.
Fourthly, all players will now have to take part in monthly BMI tests to ensure that they are maintaining their fitness throughout the season.
Finally, Erik ten Hag has told the squad that any complaints they have about the club should now be addressed directly towards him and not to their agents.
While all of these would seem like rather straightforward rules at an elite club, the need for the new manager to bring them in points to the lack of discipline that had previously been present at Manchester United.
It remains to be seen how these new measures will affect results on the pitch.
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