DANNY MURPHY: Man United had a brilliant win – and set up like you should against foes with a higher footballing IQ – but it won’t be enough to save Man United boss Erik ten Hag

Erik ten Hag and Manchester United deserved to win the FA Cup. They explain exactly how you should play against opponents with a higher footballing IQ.

Ten Hag played with two midfielders in Sofyan Amrabat and Kobbie Mainoo, used Scott McTominay to stop Rodri and made the big call to use Bruno Fernandes as a false nine instead of starting Rasmus Hojlund.

It worked perfectly because a team like Manchester City deserves that level of respect if you want to beat them.

But I was left with the pressing question: ‘Why hasn’t Ten Hag done this more often and shown better tactical insight over a longer period of time to compete against the biggest and best?’

On Saturday United were right. Both full-backs, Diogo Dalot and Aaron Wan-Bissaka, were great and deserve credit, but you have to wonder why it took so long for Ten Hag to get it right.

But it raised questions as to why Erik ten Hag was unable to achieve that feat earlier

Of course it helped that Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane were both available. They are guys who understand the position and it is a shame that they have missed so many games.

But it doesn’t explain why Ten Hag came up with a good game plan at Wembley and not before.

The only other time I can remember United playing like this was at Anfield, and on that occasion they had luck on their side and drew 0-0. This victory was not due to luck.

Although the opening goal was a City mistake, United’s response was impressive. They stuck to their plan with real discipline, rather than getting carried away, and the second goal was fantastic.

Marcus Rashford’s beautiful crossfield ball set things up and Bruno’s final pass for Mainoo was perhaps the best assist of the season. It was brilliant from a player in complete control of his emotions. We saw how United lacked creativity when missing the Crystal Palace match. To produce an incredibly clever piece of skill in the middle of a red-hot finale summed him up.

United won because of what was going right for them, not because City lacked intensity, even if Pep Guardiola’s side started with more lethargy than usual.

The conversation now turns to the future of Ten Hag. I’m glad he won a second trophy because he had to endure a lot at Old Trafford. At the same time, it is normal for a manager to accept criticism at such a big club.

One swallow does not make a summer. The reality is that he hasn’t shown enough in terms of motivational techniques or tactics over time.

He has failed repeatedly and I don’t think this final will be enough to save him because the United owners cannot base their decision on one game.

United have been terrible too often this season. Fans of rival clubs would like to see Ten Hag stay, because they do not see him as the figure who should help the team move forward.

Clubs are criticized for changing managers without a successor in place, but are also criticized for seeing what is there first, which is considered disrespectful to the incumbent club. My view is that after the season United have had, it was imperative for the club to look at viable options. I don’t think the hierarchy will feel guilty if Ten Hag is angry. He will be well compensated if he leaves and his job would not be in jeopardy if the team had performed.

United need to be competitive in big leagues. They haven’t been around for a year and the buck stops with the manager. I would be surprised if there is no change despite yesterday.

I was interested to see Steve McClaren working on the sidelines. Steve was one of the best coaches I ever worked with when he helped Sven Goran Eriksson in England.

Pep Guardiola must have been fine with his positioning and there was no pressure until the first goal

Ten Hag got the United job too early and despite the right tactics at Wembley, is not the solution

He is underutilized by Ten Hag. I’ve often watched United and wondered how they could get so badly overrun when Steve was on the sidelines.

I guess he had a role yesterday. United condensed the space centrally and played on the counter, perfect for the occasion.

Guardiola will have no doubts about his position. They weren’t under pressure until Josko Gvardiol’s mistake and the first goal was always going to change the dynamic against opponents who were in good position.

It was good for Ten Hag to see him smile. He is a modest and likeable man and has good tactics. But the big picture is that he got the United job too early and I still don’t think he is the solution.