Manchester United appear to be inching closer to hiring Erik Ten Hag as their new manager, with reports suggesting talks with the Ajax boss are at the advanced stage.
Ajax’s boss is at the top of Manchester United’s managerial wish-list
Last month, Ten Hag held meetings with United about taking over as manager, and he has been touted for the job since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer departed the club in November of last year.
Ten Hag is reportedly expected to depart the Dutch giants at the end of the season, as the Red Devils appear to be impressed during negotiations, and he is regarded as a potential successor to interim manager Ralf Rangnick in the summer.
Mauricio Pochettino, the head coach of Paris Saint-Germain, and Ten Hag are both in the mix for the job. Manchester United is expected to have negotiations later this month.
It was recently announced that United had met with Ten Hag and had an interview with the Ajax manager, with negotiations spearheaded by United executives John Murtough and Darren Fletcher, with their former player, Ajax CEO Edwin van der Sar.
At Old Trafford, Van Der Sar won the Champions League and the Premiership, and he has admitted that his team is willing to let Ten Hag depart.
During his trophy-laden stint at Ajax, Ten Hag earned a reputation as one of Europe’s most dynamic coaches. In his four years with Ajax, the Dutchman has led the team to five trophies, including two league triumphs.
And all indications lead to Ten Hag, the former apprentice of Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola during his stint at Barcelona, taking over the Old Trafford dugout and becoming the club’s sixth manager since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013.
Ten Hag, 52, is out of contract with Ajax at the end of next season and hence is not expected to fetch a large compensation payment. United will reportedly have to pay £1.7 million to get Ten Hag of his contract, which he signed in April.
With six games remaining in the Eredivisie, Ajax leads PSV Eindhoven by two points and will meet PSV in the Dutch cup final. Julen Lopetegui and Luis Enrique, the managers of Sevilla FC, and the Spanish national side have both been closely linked with the Manchester club.
Ten Hag has responded to reports linking his move to the Premier League.
Sport1 quoted Ten Hag as saying –
“Everyone knows each other in the industry, there are always talks with representatives from other clubs, that’s normal.
Manchester United is a great club with great fans. But I can only repeat myself: My full focus is completely on Ajax. We are already planning for the new season.”
He further added that he knows that they’ve spoken to a few others, but we haven’t yet discussed their thoughts and opinions from those interactions.
United players are in dismay over the potential appointment.
Ten Hag, despite having won two Eredivisie titles in his first managerial appointment in 2012, has yet to manage in any of Europe’s big leagues.
Despite assuming his first managerial post in 2012, Ten Hag, who has won two Eredivisie titles, has yet to manage in any of Europe’s big leagues. Following earlier links to Mauricio Pochettino, several top Manchester United players are believed to view Ajax manager Erik ten Hag as an unconvincing second choice.
Mauricio Pochettino, the former Tottenham and current PSG manager, is said to be the preference of the current crop of players.
After managing Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur, the manager of Paris Saint-Germain has vast Premier League expertise.
The attitude in the United camp is not quite ideal at the moment, and the dismal 1-1 draw with Leicester City over the weekend didn’t help matters. After a 1-1 draw against the Foxes at Old Trafford, the Red Devils slipped to seventh place in the Premier League.
Following West Ham’s win against Everton over the weekend, they have leapfrogged United in the Premier League standings. Manchester United who is three points behind fourth-placed Tottenham looks poised to lose out on European competition for next season and will go the rest of the season trophyless after failing to win any competitions.
Having added Jadon Sancho, Raphael Varane, and Cristiano Ronaldo in the summer, United has made little progress this season. United are scheduled to travel to Goodison Park to play Everton on Saturday.
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