On Monday, Manchester United sealed a 2-0 win over Wigan Athletic in in the FA Cup.
Erik ten Hag had two goalkeepers, Altay Bayındır and Tom Heaton, on the bench for the clash against Wigan Athletic.
Norwegian journalist Fredrik Filtvedt is clearly not pleased the Manchester United boss didn’t include youngster Isak Hansen-Aarøen in the squad to face Wigan Athletic.
“It is incomprehensible that there is room for two goalkeepers on the bench and not for him,” he told VG.
VG run with the ‘incomprehensible’ as part of their headline, showing the general feeling about the perceived snub.
The Premier League side signed Hansen-Aarøen from Norwegian side Tromsø IL in 2020. Jonas Johansen worked with the midfielder closely at Tromsø and now works as his fitness trainer, whenever the teenager returns home.
The Norway U21 international was part of Manchester United’s pre-season squad but hasn’t featured at all in a competitive fixture this season. Johansen is unhappy with this and has urged the Norwegian to leave Old Trafford to help his career progress.
The personal trainer was left disappointed after Ten Hag snubbed the player for the cup tie against Wigan Athletic. He has also expressed his frustration that the teenager wasn’t given other opportunities this season.
“It was a bit disappointing. As they have several players out, I thought he would be an offensive option. It was very surprising,” Johansen explained.
“Isak has many international skills that not many others have. With those qualities and achievements in the U21 team, he should be in a first-team squad.”
Last September, Hansen-Aarøen revealed he would be open to leaving Manchester United in the winter market. His deal at Old Trafford lasts until next summer and Johansen has urged him to end his stay at the club.
“My recommendation to him is that he finds a new club, where he’ll have the opportunity to fight for playing time in the first team. He is at the age where he should play regularly for the first team. I expect a change of club, but whether it will be now or this summer we will see,” he added.
