'See my record!' - Defiant Erik ten Hag fires back at Man Utd critics and backs himself to turn Red Devils' nightmare season around

Ten Hag was in a defiant mood ahead of United's match against Chelsea, after facing more pressure following the team's dismal defeat at Newcastle. And he took the unexpected route of reminding people of his achievements as a manager in a move reminiscent of Jose Mourinho.

"There will always be tough times in every journey. We are in the right direction. I know we will get there where we want to be. Because – see my record," Ten Hag told a press conference. "Everywhere where I was, every season, I got my targets. If we stick together, stick to the plan and the strategy, we will get where we want to be.

"Of course negativity is never good. You have to take care it never kills the energy. But I don’t care because I know, and all the players know, we are the biggest club in the world, then you know you get a lot of attention. You know in the moment results are not going your way and you are not performing how you should, there is coming criticism. You have to deal with that. There is no way you are alone there. We are together in that boat. We know that. So we will deal with it in togetherness."

Unlike previous Man United coaches like Louis van Gaal and Mourinho, Ten Hag did not have a glittering record before rocking up to Old Trafford, although he did pull off some big achievements at his last club Ajax. Ten Hag led the Amsterdam giants to three Eredivisie titles and two domestic cups, although his most impressive feat was to lead them to the semi-finals of the 2018-19 Champions League, when they were moments away from reaching the final before collapsing to Tottenham.

He took his previous club Utrecht to fourth in the Eredivisie while he achieved promotion with his two other main jobs, with Go Ahead Eagles and Bayern Munich's reserve team. In his first season with United he led the Red Devils to the Carabao Cup, their first trophy in six years, to finish third in the Premier League and to the final of the FA Cup.

United took the unusual decision to ban four journalists from Ten Hag's press conference for publishing stories of dressing room unrest against the manager without asking the club for a response. It is the first time the club had barred members of the press from speaking to the manager since the days of Sir Alex Ferguson.

The embattled Red Devils desperately need to beat Chelsea at Old Trafford on Wednesday to demonstrate they can compete with the top teams in the Premier League, having lost to Arsenal, Tottenham, Manchester City, Brighton and Newcastle already this season.