Man United fans all say the same thing about Erik ten Hag - but it might not be enough to save him

"We have many good, young players," said Erik ten Hag at the beginning of March.

"We have to develop their skillset, being in the team feeling and building a stronger connection with Manchester United, a real winning attitude. That is a base to winning trophies."

After a disappointing season, many fans have weighed up the pros and cons of keeping Ten Hag as manager but his record of giving young players a chance is a huge positive. He arrived in Manchester with an excellent record of developing young players in Amsterdam and he's continued to give academy products meaningful opportunities.

ALSO READ: United decide who is in charge of recruitment ahead of transfer window

ALSO READ: Sir Jim Ratcliffe's structure at United is shaping up - this is how it will look

Ten Hag also said: "I think it’s in the DNA of Manchester United; the Busby Babes, the Class of '92. Developing players into the first team should be one key area of United.

"This club is very successful with it and we are now bringing up players and it is a big advantage that young players have a very good connection with the fans and it gives a club identity."

Ten Hag has given five players - Charlie McNeill, Kobbie Mainoo, Dan Gore, Willy Kambwala and Omari Forson - their debuts since his appointment and he's overseen the development of Alejandro Garnacho, who has taken his game to another level with the Dutchman in charge. Mainoo and Garnacho are now established first-team players and Ten Hag deserves praise for recognising their ability and trusting them in the Premier League.

The milestone of the 250th academy player to make their senior debut will be reached imminently, however, Ten Hag might have parted ways with United when that comes around.

There's no denying United have gone spectacularly backwards this season. They exited Europe and the Carabao Cup before Christmas, qualifying for the Champions League looks highly unlikely and some of the performances along the way have been inexcusable.

Perhaps the most concerning aspect is how United have played, as they have often looked poorly coached, they have lacked style, substance and a robust structure. All of those ingredients have produced chaotic games and even when United have won this season, they have failed to do so comfortably and haven't been convincing.

The reasons for sacking Ten Hag at the end of the season have stacked up and in the column for the reasons to keep him is his promotion of youth to the first-team.

Not only that, but youngsters have been heavily present in training during Ten Hag's tenure and some have suggested that could bode well for the decision on his future.

Zach Baumann, James Scanlon, Jack Fletcher, Shea Lacey and Ethan Wheatley took part in senior training on Wednesday and those opportunities are important for their development, yet the truth is they were only called up from the academy because extra numbers were required.

Such opportunities are brilliant individually, but in the grand scheme of things, training with the senior squad is usually only significant when numbers aren't needed. Recent examples of that have been Mainoo and Garnacho, as both players were the only academy products to be called up at different stages, and look where they are now.

Nonetheless, it's excellent to see youngsters involved in first-team training and that's ultimately the first step to be given a senior debut somewhere down the line.

Louis van Gaal gave 14 debuts to players from the academy and was still sacked. It's a positive on Ten Hag's record but he might meet the same fate.