Erik ten Hag must now tell Sir Jim Ratcliffe the same thing he told the Glazers at Man United

Following last month's 2-1 win over Manchester City in the FA Cup final at Wembley, Manchester United will participate in the Europa League for a second time in three seasons next term. They will do so with Erik ten Hag at the helm.

The Dutchman has been kept on as manager after a thorough review by Ineos, which concluded with the news that, despite the speculation, the 54-year-old will be given then chance to lead United into a new era.

United failed to secure European qualification for 2024/25 after finishing eighth in the Premier League table. It marked their lowest-ever finish in the Premier League era.

However, United knew they had a second bite of the European cherry and would do so with a win over City. Goals from Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo sealed a Europa League berth, relegating Chelsea to the Conference League and denying Newcastle United a spot in Europe altogether. It arguably kept Ten Hag in a job too.

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As a result, United could play up to 67 matches in all competitions next season. Should United require the knockout round, they could play up to 17 games in the Europa League alone.

With injuries having been a big problem throughout the 2023/24 campaign, there is no denying that United need as much strength in depth as possible. The Reds have been guilty of stockpiling players in recent years, meaning their squad has a bloated feel to it, but the difference in quality between their regular starters and those in the reserve trench is quite striking, highlighted by their eighth-placed finish.

United need a better level of quality in reserve and that is why this summer's transfer window is so important. A lorry load of changes need to be made, but much of it rests on the funds they can generate through player sales.

But to ensure United have the right level of depth available to them, they also need to get the right balance. Anthony Martial's impending exit will leave United with just one out-and-out striker in the form of Rasmus Hojlund.

Elsewhere, unless United decide to trigger the option to sign Sofyan Amrabat permanently, his return to Fiorentina will leave them with just one defensive midfielder in the form of Casemiro, who could be sold this summer. If the former returns to Italy and Casemiro is sold, United will need two defensive midfielders.

United manager Ten Hag, whose has been confirmed as staying at the club, addressed the need for having two defensive midfielders after Amrabat signed last September. A few months earlier, the Dutchman had already highlighted the importance of having two players in each position.

Speaking in April 2023, Ten Hag said: "If the squad is so strong that you have in every position double the same quality, then it's good."

He added: "I think the players are, to a certain point, very capable and we have players in the squad who can really take the load of so many games. But when you play a lot of games, and the load is getting higher, you need to rotate because you have to keep the players fit and fresh."

Ten Hag, understandably, cited United's injury crisis for their downfall in the most recent campaign, claiming ahead of the FA Cup semi-final win over Coventry City that he had only been able to name his strongest starting XI once in 18 months. The Reds were battered by injury issues throughout 2023/24, regularly forcing Ten Hag to put square pegs into round holes.

Diogo Dalot often had to operate at left-back, Casemiro was tasked with operating as a makeshift centre-back and Bruno Fernandes had to play up front, to name just a few examples. With sufficient depth available, United may have been able to avoid those scenarios.

It means, ahead of the transfer window opening on Friday, Ineos have already been served with a warning for what they must try and achieve over the next two months or so, now that Ten Hag is staying in position. United's level of depth needs to improve, as does the balance of the squad.