Krishnan Sreekumar
Ajax Amsterdam manager Erik ten Hag has reservations over Manchester United job
According to ESPN, Ajax Amsterdam boss Erik ten Hag is said to have reservations about the vacant permanent manager position at Manchester United in the summer, with the Dutchman touted to be one of the candidates for the job.
Current boss Ralf Rangnick is only in charge of the team on an interim basis, with his tenure ending in the summer. The German has done a fair job so far at United, with the side only losing once in the league since he took over late last year.
It is said that the Manchester club want their next manager appointment to be absolutely perfect, with the club launching a thorough recruitment process to ensure it happens. The club have drawn up a shortlist of candidates already, and ten Hag’s name features on it.
ten Hag has done a brilliant job at Ajax this season, with the Dutch side sitting on top of the Eredivisie table after only losing thrice so far. The manager has had prior success at the club as well, winning the league title twice.
No clear structure
Despite being linked to one of the biggest jobs in world football, the Ajax boss is said to have reservations about the set-up at United. In Holland, the manager worked well within a clearly defined structure which had chief executive Edwin van der Sar and a director of football.
The 52-year-old cannot be criticised for not wanting to move away from a system that has brought him and his current club a lot of success over the past few years, with Ajax now on course to win a third straight title, despite the league being abandoned last season due to COVID. However, a closer look at the inner workings of the Red Devils may change his mind.
Over the last year, the club hierarchy has undergone a massive change. Not just this, but the Old Trafford side seem to have put in place a different structure as well, with new roles being created for the development of the football club as a whole.
John Murtough was appointed as the club’s director of football last March, while the side also promoted former midfielder Darren Fletcher as their technical director. To top it all off, Richard Arnold was named as United’s new chief executive officer effective from last month to usher in a new era at the Theatre of Dreams.
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Despite Fletcher taking on a role that is known to be likened to a managerial position, the Scot has been seen helping Rangnick with some training sessions at Carrington. Further, he clarified that his new job description included working with the club’s head of academy to devise a long-term strategy for bringing youngsters through.
On paper, there clearly seems to be a well-defined structure at United with clear roles for those involved at the club. Perhaps ten Hag will have been hasty to have reservations about the structure in Manchester. If however, he chooses to make a move to England in the summer, then he may feel glad about the support system around him at the club.
