Man Utd’s Ten Hag urges calm amid fiery Galatasaray atmosphere،
Erik ten Hag has asked his Manchester United players to “stay calm” in the heated atmosphere at Galatasaray’s Rams Park.
United, bottom of Group A, will be eliminated from the Champions League if they lose in Istanbul on Wednesday.
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They will face a fiery atmosphere in the Turkish capital, but Ten Hag told his team they cannot be distracted by the hostility.
“You have to stay calm in your head, not get too emotional and control your emotions,” Ten Hag said at a press conference on Tuesday.
“Don’t give them anything, neither does the referee. Don’t give them a moment that they can take, so you have to stay away from such moments.
“You have to make it your game. How the opponent plays is not so important, it’s how you play. We will come up with a good plan and the players have to decide.”
Ten Hag were strengthened ahead of the match with the return of Rasmus Højlund and Antony, who both took part in training at Carrington on Tuesday morning.
The Dutchman must decide whether to choose 18-year-old Kobbie Mainoo, who impressed on his full Premier League debut in the 3-0 win over Everton on Sunday.
“If the players are good enough, they’re old enough,” Ten Hag said.
“I think we are very happy with the performance [against Everton] but it is one and you need to do it consistently. Kobbie is so mature and we are confident.”
United will be knocked out of the Champions League if they lose to Galatasaray and will finish bottom of the group if the result is combined with an FC Copenhagen victory against Bayern Munich.
They have won just one of their last eight away matches in the Champions League, against Villarreal in November 2021, when Michael Carrick was caretaker manager.
“You can always find something,” Ten Hag said.
“Last year we couldn’t win away, now we can’t win at home, so we win away games, but now you say we can’t win away in Europe. We are confident.
“The last away games were very hostile and we played very well, calm and composed. This team also did it last year in Barcelona. [in the Europa League] so we know how to deal with it.
