Erik ten Hag insists Man United perform better when Wout Weghorst plays

Erik ten Hag has leapt to the defence of Wout Weghorst, just days after Ruud Gullit claimed the Dutchman was 'not good enough' to play for Manchester United.

The former Wolfsburg and Burnley striker has only scored twice in 18 appearances across all competitions for United since he was brought in to lead the line for Erik Ten Hag's side on loan in January.

Gullit criticised Weghorst after he failed to score for the Netherlands against Gibraltar - a performance that led to the Dutchman himself even criticising his own display.

Speaking ahead of United's crucial top-four clash with Newcastle on Sunday, Ten Hag has spoken of Weghorst's importance to his side.

He told reporters: 'I think I'm happy with Wout is doing. Because when Wout is in the team the team is performing better.'

His praise for Weghorst was as a follow-up remark to questioning over whether Scott McTominay could play as a striker following his goalscoring exploits with Scotland over the international break.

Ten Hag said: 'He (McTominay) can play in many roles. It’s clear he has scoring capabilities.

'Also this season for us he’s a really good finisher. But I see him as a midfielder.'

His lack of goalscoring form continued into the international break with Holland as he failed to find the net from any of his three shots against Gibraltar, who are ranked 200th in the world.

Holland's goals on the night were instead scored by Memphis Depay and a brace from centre-back Nathan Ake, who now has as many goals for the national team as Weghorst.

Gullit said on Ziggo Sport that he always looks at Weghorst 'in a weird way', and that 'every now and then you see defects' in the 30-year-old's game.

'I have a lot of admiration for him, but at the same time, I think he is not good enough for Manchester United and the Oranje,' he said.

Weghorst himself provided a brutally honest assessment of his recent performances for club and country, claiming that they had been 's***'.

He told ESPN: 'Ultimately, it's also quality. You have to be honest about that too. You can call it bad luck, but that last ball of mine was allowed in. As a striker, you know that you can score in these kind of competitions.'

The Dutchman has also revealed of how he has played a deeper role in support of in-form forward Marcus Rashford.

'The manager told me at half-time in the away game at Fulham that he was considering the option of playing me as a 10, behind Rashford', he said, according to the Mirror.

'He told me just to take his plan into account because Ten Hag is a manager who places a lot of value on task-conscious play.

'The manager then told me I had to do my share of defensive work in the role. I am a team player, so I replied "That's no problem at all, boss".'

Weghorst also reflected on his goal scoring stats not revealing the whole story of his time at United, as he added: 'Sometimes I think I am doing really well - but then I remember I am still only on two goals.

'That's also how everyone looks at football. I try to teach my children to look at other aspects than just goals - and that works for me as well.

'I prefer to look at what is positive. When I scored my first goal at Nottingham Forest I said in an interview I can't wait for my first goal in a home game in front of our fans. That took another few games, but it was a big moment for me.

Weghorst has not scored since the 4-1 victory over Real Betis in the Europa League Round of 16 at Old Trafford on March 9.