Man Utd make Erik ten Hag No 1 target but director of football rejects move

MAN UTD will look for a permanent manager in the summer.

Posted Monday, December 13, 2021 by Express.co.uk

Manchester United have made Ajax head coach Erik Ten Hag their top permanent manager target, according to reports. Ten Hag had been frequently linked with the role alongside Mauricio Pochettino before Ralf Rangnick was appointed as interim boss.

Rangnick was appointed as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s short-term successor at the end of November.

The German will then take on a consultancy role within the Old Trafford hierarchy and will likely have a say in who the club appoints as its next permanent manager.

United have now had six bosses, including Rangnick, since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013 and will want to make the correct choice.

Ten Hag and Pochettino has been consistently linked with the job but will likely cost vast sums of money to prise away from Ajax and Paris Saint Germain respectively.

The Dutchman has earned himself a reputation as a prolific talent developer who prefers a dynamic, high-pressing system. That would be a seamless transition from the style deployed by Rangnick.

Man Utd reportedly want to appoint Erik Ten Hag

According to the Mirror, Ten Hag is United’s preferred choice to step in when Rangnick moves into the United hierarchy.

However, Ajax’s director of football Marc Overmars is unwilling to make the move, which could put an appointment in doubt.

The 51-year-old Ten Hag prefers to work under a director of football because it allows him to get on with coaching.

Overmars has been a wanted man in recent years due to Ajax’s success at selling players on for big money despite maintaining good form both domestically and in Europe.

His good friend and former Netherlands team-mate Marciano Vink has said that Overmars has previously had three approaches from the Premier League but might wince at the instability at Old Trafford.

The former Arsenal winger has also been linked with the vacant director of football role at Newcastle.

Vink said: “Overmars is enjoying his job at Ajax. But he has had big chances to change recently: Newcastle United, Arsenal, Manchester United.

“For Ajax, it is a brilliant thing that he has not gone there and has decided to sign a new deal.

“I meet up with Marc regularly. If he had taken the job of director of football at United, it would have been perfect for Ten Hag.

“But Manchester United is a very difficult club to work for right now.

“I think Bayern Munich would suit Ten Hag better than Man United. Even Tottenham Hotspur would be a better place to start in the Premier League.

“There he would work a little bit away from the spotlight. At United the focus of the whole world is right on top of you.

“At United, they expect you to perform miracles from day one with all their star players. At a club like Bayern Munich, there is more peace and stability.”