Fernandes spares Ten Hag's blushes as Man Utd survive Blades scare
Ten Hag's side twice trailed to the Premier League's bottom club at Old Trafford before Fernandes came to his beleaguered manager's aid in the second half. Jayden Bogle put the Blades ahead and although Harry Maguire equalised before half-time, Ben Brereton Diaz restored the visitors' advantage soon after the interval.
Fernandes bailed out Ten Hag with a penalty equaliser before the Portugal midfielder's long-range rocket put United in front with nine minutes left. Rasmus Hojlund got United's fourth to ensure they could finally enjoy a first league win in five games since beating Everton on March 9.
It was a temporary reprieve for Ten Hag, who hopes to salvage sixth-placed United's dismal season by winning the FA Cup and finishing high enough to qualify for the Europa League. The Blades are 10 points from safety with only four games left as they sink towards relegation just one year after promotion from the Championship.
Ten Hag endured stinging criticism after United stumbled into the FA Cup final with a spluttering win against second tier Coventry on Sunday. United blew a three-goal lead in the last 19 minutes of normal time at Wembley and then barely survived a penalty shoot-out to book a final date with Manchester City.
Criticised for the sloppy performance, Ten Hag launched a strong defence of his credentials on Tuesday, telling journalists their negative coverage of the semi-final was a "disgrace" as the former Ajax boss insisted he has been successful for the last 10 years. But United's new technical director Jason Wilcox has reportedly been asked by co-owner Jim Ratcliffe to conduct an audit of Ten Hag's training methods and sometimes fractious relationships with his players.
Watching from the directors box, Wilcox
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