sport news Erik ten Hag says higher standards are firing Manchester United towards a title ... trends now

It is often the case that to understand the big things, you must look at the little things.

Such is Manchester United under Erik ten Hag. The big things speak for themselves: nine wins in a row, a run ended only by an otherworldly free-kick by Michael Olise against Crystal Palace, victory over their City rivals and the only side so far to beat Sunday's opponents Arsenal in the Premier League.

What underpins that, beyond the tactics, the formations, the more style of play, has been a change in culture, a shift in values. All set by the manager. That’s established by the little things.

Just take Marcus Rashford. A few weeks ago, Rashford overslept and missed a meeting. So, he was dropped to the bench for the game against Wolves on New Year’s Eve. It didn’t matter that he’d been in sensational form. Ten Hag told the media before kick-off it was for disciplinary reasons. Rashford came on at half-time and scored. After the game, Rashford confirmed he’d slept through his alarm, he’d accepted the punishment and that was the end of it.

All so simple, so straightforward. A small detail on the face of it but as telling as the nine-game winning run. Such indiscretions are often brushed aside, move along, nothing to see here, we’ll keep it in-house thank you very much. But not now at United, not under ten Hag.

‘What I want to bring in is a culture of high standards and values – and also, I think, accountability and transparency,’ said Ten Hag ahead of the trip to Arsenal this afternoon. ‘So, honestly, that's our values I want to set, I want to control.’

‘I think that is the way we have to cooperate, so internal but also external so, for instance, with the media and with the fans.’

Cameras at Selhurst Park spotted Bruno Fernandes raging at Brazilian team-mate Antony after a misplaced pass. Later, Fernandes told United’s club media that ‘the manager has said many times: if someone is not doing what they need to, we have to command each other ourselves and understand what is not going well because it can help to send a message from the bench onto the pitch.’ The pair high-fived less than five minutes later.

The players have bought into it. Those in the dressing room have spoken about how they appreciate Ten Hag’s directness. They know where they stand. They saw how ruthlessly Ten Hag dispatched of Cristiano Ronaldo once he’d wrung out his soggy washing to Piers Morgan. Ten Hag, too, reciprocates. Luke Shaw was

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