Step up deals for £42m Matthijs de Ligt, £34m Joshua Zirkzee and Manuel Ugarte, sell stars - with all-but a select handful for sale - and convince Bruno Fernandes: What's next for Erik ten Hag at Man United

It is only 44 days since he masterminded a pivotal win over Manchester City in the FA Cup final at Wembley, but plenty has changed since Erik ten Hag last set foot inside Carrington.

The Manchester United manager returned for pre-season on Monday morning with a new contract extension and a new backroom team as work begins on a £50million overhaul of the training ground.

United's squad is likely to look significantly different as well by the time the transfer window closes on August 30, while Ten Hag needs to address a number of existing issues within the squad. Mail Sport takes a look at his most pressing concerns as he prepares for a third season at Old Trafford.

Blend new backroom team

It's a measure of United's faith in Ten Hag that they have allowed him to reshape his backroom staff with three fellow Dutchman.

New assistants Ruud van Nistelrooy and Rene Hake arrived at the training ground on Monday morning along with new goalkeeper coach Jelle ten Rouwelaar. United are waiting for the three coaches to be granted their visas before confirming the appointments.

While Ten Hag has had a big say in the choice of his new staff, there will still be a period of adjustment as the four men get used to working together.

After deciding to keep Ten Hag in charge, Ineos wanted a more dynamic coaching team behind him. Van Nistelrooy needs no introduction to United fans and has managerial experience with PSV Eindhoven. Hake has been persuaded to leave Go Ahead Eagles after a successful spell in Deventer. Ten Rouwelaar knows the Premier League after two years at Burnley.

Mitchell van der Gaag, Ten Hag's No.2 for the last three years at Ajax and United, is set to leave in search of a managerial job, following in the footsteps of forwards coach Benni McCarthy, while joint assistant Steve McClaren and goalkeeper coach Richard Hartis face an uncertain future at Old Trafford.

Build bridges with his bosses

As well as a new team working under him, Ten Hag will also have to adapt to a new structure above him as well.

Chief executive Omar Berrada starts work next week after a period of gardening leave at Manchester City, and new sporting director Dan Ashworth is only in his second week in the job after United agreed compensation with Newcastle.

Ten Hag is already familiar with Ineos sporting director Sir Dave Brailsford and United's new technical director Jason Wilcox, but a degree of bridge building will be required there after they interviewed other managers for his job before agreeing to keep Ten Hag and extend his contract during talks at the Dutchman's holiday home in Ibiza.

Ashworth will be Ten Hag's day-to-day boss, while Brailsford is expected to take a step back after overseeing a period of huge change at United. But after working alongside United's former football director John Murtough for so long, Ten Hag will need time to adjust to the new order.

Get used to new facilities

It isn't just the faces that are changing around Carrington. After six months of assessment, Ineos have begun a £50m revamp of the training ground being paid for by Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

It will result in improved facilities from next summer onwards, but for now the first-team will relocate to the £10m facility built for the women's and academy teams that opened last year.

Ten Hag was getting used to the new surroundings on Monday as United's first non-international players reported for pre-season.

A week of fitness testing and training will be followed by the first friendly against Rosenborg in Trondheim next Monday before United face Rangers at Murrayfield and then go on tour to the US where they will face Arsenal, Real Betis and Liverpool.

Step up pursuit of transfer targets

United have already prioritised the areas of the team that need strengthening, and identified the players they want to bring in.

Central defence is a key position and Ten Hag will be hoping to get a deal over the line for his former Ajax defender Matthijs de Ligt as United continue talks with Bayern Munich over a £42m deal.

An improved offer is likely to go in for Everton's £70m-rated Jarrad Branthwaite to play alongside De Ligt, although the two clubs are more than £30m apart at the moment so it remains to be seen if they can reach a compromise.

Ten Hag also wants a striker to replace Anthony Martial and United are believed to be close to signing Joshua Zirkzee who has a £34m release clause at Bologna.

Ideally, Ten Hag would want his signings in as early as possible. However, both De Ligt and Zirkzee are currently on international duty at Euro 2024, with Holland set to face England in the semi-finals on Wednesday, and will have three weeks' holiday after the tournament.

The same applies to Paris Saint-Germain's defensive midfielder Manuel Ugarte, wanted by Ten Hag to replace Casemiro, who has reached the semi-finals of the Copa America with Uruguay.

Sell players to fund new signings

Financial Fair Play and profit and sustainability rules mean that United are under pressure like never before to balance the books, and Ten Hag's transfer business this summer will be reliant on selling players.

Aside from a select handful, United will listen to offers for every member of their squad and are currently in talks over selling Mason Greenwood, Jadon Sancho, Donny van de Beek, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Victor Lindelof.

Greenwood was at the training ground on Monday to discuss his options, with talks over a move to Marseille said to be at an advanced stage, while Van de Beek is also close to joining Girona.

Juventus lead the chase for Sancho whose fallout with Ten Hag last season led to the £73m winger training on his own for four months before joining Borussia Dortmund on loan in January. The manager is unlikely to want Sancho back at Carrington even if a move doesn't materialise soon.

Galatasaray and Fenerbahce want Wan-Bissaka and Lindelof respectively, while United are hoping to get Casemiro's £375,000-a-week salary off the wage bill by selling him to the Saudi Pro League.

Again, Ten Hag will want deals sorted out sooner rather than later so he can work with his squad for the new season, and he will be seeking updates from Ashworth this week.

Find a way to revitalise Rashford

One of the biggest challenges for Ten Hag will be helping Marcus Rashford rediscover the form that saw him hit 30 goals in the Dutchmen's first season before scoring just eight times in the second campaign.

Ten Hag is known to feel let down by Rashford's poor output – and off-the-field infractions that led to him being censured twice for nightclubbing – while the player was unhappy at being asked to play a deeper role to protect the left-back position in the prolonged absence of Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia.

After missing out on England's squad for the Euros, Rashford starts pre-season sooner than he might have expected. Assuming he stays at United this summer, Ten Hag must find a way of getting the best out of Rashford again as well as making sure he stays in line off the pitch.

Keep hold of captain Bruno

Ten Hag made the bold step of taking the captain's armband off Harry Maguire and giving it to Bruno Fernandes a year ago, and he will want to ensure his skipper stays at Old Trafford this summer.

Fernandes is now on holiday after Portugal exited Euro 2024 having said that he would make any decisions over his future after the tournament. He has been linked with Bayern Munich as well as a move to the Saudi Pro League.

While United would not usually consider allowing such an important player to leave, the current financial situation is a factor. Fernandes turns 30 in September and is due to start negotiations over a new contract in the next year. Do United build their new team around him or cash in?

Ten Hag would certainly be in favour of keeping Fernandes who was one of his most consistent performers during a difficult second season.

Avoid a repeat of injury blitz

Injuries were one of the main problems for Ten Hag, with United suffering nearly 70 separate cases last term, and he will be determined to resolve that issue.

Brailsford, famous for his marginal gains approach, assessed every aspect of Carrington and there will be even greater focus on fitness, conditioning and nutrition with Ineos in control of football affairs.

The sight of Shaw returning to action for England at the Euros for the first time since mid-February was a reminder of just how little football the left-back played (Malacia didn't feature at all), and how Ten Hag desperately needs his squad to stay fit if he is going to get the best out of them.

The hard work starts here but there were rumblings last season that the training was too intense at time. Ten Hag knows he has to get it right to avoid a repeat of last season's injury crises.