While the news his captain will not miss any games will be a boost to Ten Hag, the United boss remains under pressure and has also been criticised by one of his former first-team coaches.

Benni McCarthy, the former Blackburn striker, worked under the Dutchman for two years at Old Trafford before leaving to pursue his own career in management in the summer.

“In modern football, I believe that players want to see a bit more passion in their coach,” the South African, speaking to Portuguese outlet ZEROZERO, said of Ten Hag.

“They need to feel that the coach is with them and willing to fight alongside them.

“Tactically, I feel that Erik is at the top. He lacks a bit of that fire, that passion. That’s where we differ, him and I.”

McCarthy also questioned the attitude during training of some United players in his time at the club.

“If some of the Manchester United players had what Bruno [Fernandes] and Diogo [Dalot] have, it would have been easier to achieve good results,” he added.

“They both trained with incredible concentration, giving everything they had. Some of the others didn’t do the same.

“This ended up limiting United’s progress, because some players weren’t training to the best of their ability.

“Even in games, the data showed us that some players were at their peak performance and others a little below.”

United won the FA Cup under Ten Hag last season, but are currently 13th in the league after six matches.