Former Manchester United first team coach Benni McCarthy believes there is more pressure at big clubs like the Red Devils and Kaizer Chiefs.
Amakhosi have gone over nine season without silverware, chasing their glory days of the past, while United are also chasing the heights of their best days under Sir Alex Ferguson.
McCarthy has experienced the pressure at Old Trafford first hand, but managed to help the club lift an FA Cup and a Caraboa Cup under their reign of Erik ten Hag.
However, his contract was not extended at the end of last season, while Ten Hag was sacked last month and his successor Ruben Amorim is having his first game this weekend.
In an exclusive interview with iDiski Times’ Rob Delport, McCarthy discussed the pressure on young striker Rasmus Højlund, saying the expectations on the 21-year-old might be too high.
“But people must also not forget he’s only 21. He’s young, and the responsibility of being the main man at Man United is huge, my bru, it’s huge,” he told iDiski Times.
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“So there’s so much responsibility, and the scrutiny for being a player or the head coach at ManU is major. If you are a player at Crystal Palace or Fulham, you don’t experience it.
“Or even at Chelsea, even Chelsea and Arsenal and Man City. [Erling] Haaland is just breaking records for fun. That’s a different breed because of the manager that he has.
“But I mean if you are at Man United, jeez, just if you score one game, and you don’t score the next game, then people ask questions, and then your ability, your quality, come into question, under the spotlight, because you play at Man United. But at any other club, you get away with it.
“So the pressure for players is huge when you play at Man United. And I think that’s why sometimes you feel that there is a struggle because the expectancy level is so much more when you are at Man United than when you are at anybody else.”
McCarthy went on to agree that the situation at United could be compared to Chiefs and even Orlando Pirates, as all three are historical club’s
“Definitely, because Kaizer Chiefs, and at Orlando Pirates, they are historical teams in our league, you know,” he added.
“So when you play at a Chiefs, like at United, there’s so much pressure, so much demand, even from the fans, more than where it is anywhere else.”
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