"I don't regret" - Erik ten Hag defends decision to substitute Manchester United star after Peter Schmeichel criticism

Erik ten Hag has explained why he substituted Kobbie Mainoo in their 2-1 defeat to Nottingham Forest after Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel criticized the Dutch boss for his decision.

Speaking as a pundit for Premier League predictions, the retired goalkeeper could not understand why Ten Hag took the Englishman off the pitch at the break. He believed that the Manchester United midfielder was a positive in an otherwise tame first half.

Schmeichel said (via Metro):

"The guy you take off Mainoo is such a good player and he played alright. He was controlling that part of the pitch very, very well. There was no need to make that change when you have other players on the pitch that are doing absolutely nothing for you. I question the substitution and what that signals to the rest of the team."

During his post-match interview, Ten Hag was asked whether Mainoo was substituted due to injury. He replied:

"No, but he played a third game in a row in this week and that’s tough, where he’s coming from. I thought the energy was a little bit lower than the other two games this week, therefore we brought some new energy in. I don’t regret."

The former Ajax boss added:

"I thought Scott brought energy, I thought second half was much better our side. The first goal, when you analyse it good, we were downsized. Nothing to do with the central midfield there."

Nicolas Dominguez opened the scoring in the second half for Forest before Marcus Rashford equalized in the 78th minute. Manchester United's hopes of another comeback were dashed when Morgan Gibbs-White scored the match-winner four minutes later.

Rio Ferdinand on whether Manchester United will finish in the top 4 this season

Manchester United icon Rio Ferdinand has backed his former club to finish in the Champions League spots this season despite their turbulent form under Ten Hag.

The Red Devils are currently seventh in the league standings and have failed to be consistent with their performances. They have won 10 games and suffered nine defeats in the English top tier so far this term.

However, Ferdinand remains convinced that the club can finish in the top four this season. The pundit said on TNT Sports (via Football365):

"I think Manchester United will be there [top four]."

"They have had one of the most injury-ravaged teams this season, come January a lot of those players will be back and I think they will have a big impact on this team. United are still in touch, and with a bigger squad back playing, getting results they’ll hopefully be back in the top four.”

Manchester United will next face Wigan Athletic in the third round of the FA Cup on January 8.