WORKAHOLIC Erik ten Hag is leaving no page unturned to fix the problems at Manchester United.
And that includes regularly staying up until 4am in an attempt to find the tiny details he is missing.
Ten Hag remains under constant pressure as Red Devils boss.
The shock FA Cup final win over Manchester City ensured he kept his job beyond last season.
But five matches without a victory following earlier defeats to Brighton and Liverpool mean the Dutchman is just about hanging on again.
And that means long, gruelling days at Carrington and at home.
Ten Hag's former assistant Benni McCarthy, 46, revealed just how much work Ten Hag is putting in - joking that it is to the detriment of his marriage with wife Bianca.
Asked what is going wrong at Old Trafford, McCarthy, who left in the summer, told SuperSport: "That's the million-dollar question, that's the question for everyone. If they knew, they could fix it.
"There's nothing wrong there, it's just missing [a piece] in the puzzle, I don't even think they know what it is, they've not found that missing puzzle piece.
"What is it? Is it the mentality shift? Is it the mindset? Is it working on more specifics? It could be anything.
"When you're there, you see the work that goes into training and how the players are. I was like, 'My God, we would ruin any team,' with the way we trained.
"When you are there, you see this is high-level stuff.
"We were not fearful of anyone, the team is incredible with quality. Then come matchday, it's like we get a massive shock in the back.
"I can imagine how frustrating it is for Erik because he's probably one of the hardest-working managers I've come across.
"His attention to detail, that man goes to sleep at 3am, 4am in the morning.
"The analysts get it at all angles, even if he thinks of something at 2am.
"I'm sure his wife must be on the verge of divorcing him because that's his life. It's non-stop.
"He works tirelessly and when you put that much work in, you expect things to go well, but that's why I'm saying there's something [that's not right]."
McCarthy worked under Ten Hag during his first two seasons at Old Trafford - with the objective of contending for titles again.
He revealed the coaches arrived at Carrington around 7.15am ahead of a meeting 15 minutes later with the manager and his staff to discuss the training session.
The players get to the training ground at 8am and soon head for training - likely a warm-up in the gym before going outside on the grass.
McCarthy then said the likes of "special" Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes, Rasmus Hojlund, Lisandro Martinez and Casemiro then stay out for extra training and competitions.
After lunch, there was a training debrief among the coaches and then from 2pm, they would use the video analysis to give personal feedback to the players.
But despite being popular with the first-team stars, especially Rashford, Fernandes and Casemiro, McCarthy departed in the summer.
He has not been afraid to speak his mind with some strong words about his former boss, suggesting Ten Hag "lacks fire".
However, he still backs Ten Hag to be the man to get United ticking again - and suggested only one man would be a better option.
Ex-Ajax, Porto, Blackburn and West Ham striker McCarthy added: "People always look for answers like replacing the coach.
"Who are you replacing him with? Who else is better than what they have?
"You're not going to get many managers - unless Pep [Guardiola] decides to change from City to United then maybe you might have a change in fortunes.
"But other than that I can't really see there's better than Ten Hag."
