Man Utd host arch rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford on Sunday, with Erik ten Hag believing he has a bigger challenge on his hands than fellow Dutchman Arne Slot has at Anfield.

Erik ten Hag reckons he has a tougher job at Manchester United than his rival and compatriot Arne Slot at Liverpool.

The two Dutch bosses meet on Sunday when Ten Hag's United host their arch rivals - who have begun the Slot era with two wins - at Old Trafford. Although Ten Hag, 54, is two years into the United job, with Slot at the Liverpool helm for just two months, the former believes he still has a bigger challenge on his hands.

United finished eighth last season, against a backdrop of chronic injuries, while Jurgen Klopp steered Liverpool to third place and League Cup success before handing over to Slot. This summer United have made a raft of new executive appointments, including sporting director Dan Ashworth, CEO Omar Berrada and technical director Jason Wilcox, as part of Sir Jim Ratcliffe's overhaul of the club.

A football leadership structure was already in place at Liverpool when Slot took over, while the new Anfield boss inherited a side that was already established, with a clear playing philosophy and identity. Moreover, in his final summer transfer window, Klopp reconstructed his midfield, signing Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo, bequeathing all four signings to his successor Slot.

"I inherited a history from six years of no trophies, that meant the dressing-room and the qualities were not right. So we had to build, we had to construct, to perform and to bring up a higher level. We did this with transfers, but we also did it by bringing academy players into the team.

Slot's Liverpool beat Ten Hag's United 3-0 in a pre-season friendly in the USA ( Image:

Andrew Powell) "What you see now is that we have brought new players in, many young players, and we are in a lifecycle from the start. We are still in the transition stage, we have young players and now we have to construct a team from it for the future.

"I'm not here to talk for him [Slot]. But Liverpool, it's clear, they are in a different phase of the lifecycle. They have a team that is mature, players who have been playing for a long time together and who are very experienced. We have much more of a mix and have to build a new team.

"Liverpool is a team where the structures are really clear, the players, the partnerships, the relationships in that team are very clear and that is what he inherited, that has been built over the past years. So things are still the same, but I have also seen some things that he already brought in."