Fabrizio Romano reveals Manchester United intent to hold direct talks with Ajax for appointing Erik ten Hag
According to football journalist Fabrizio Romano on Twitter, Manchester United are looking to hold direct conversations with Ajax Amsterdam for the appointment of Erik ten Hag as the English side’s new permanent manager.
The Premier League giants have been on the lookout for someone to replace Ole Gunnar Solkjaer as the next permanent boss since the end of last year after the Norwegian was sacked for overseeing a period of poor results that saw the team slip down the league table.
In the interim, Ralf Rangnick was brought in from Lokomotiv Moscow to steady the ship after Solskjaer’s dismissal and tasked with guiding the club to a top-four finish in order to qualify for the Champions League next season.
Now, it looks like the Manchester side has decided on ten Hag to lead the team ahead of the new campaign, with the 52-year-old impressing in Holland with his Ajax team that has won an Eredivisie double as well as added a few domestic cups to their trophy cabinet.
Excellent relationship
Romano has confirmed that United are prepared to hold direct talks with Ajax to complete the Dutchman’s appointment, given the excellent relationship between the two clubs. Just recently, in 2020, the sides had agreed on a transfer for Donny van de Beek to move to Manchester.
While a €2m clause is to be paid to Ajax as a compensation fee to prise ten Hag away from the Netherlands, Romano believes this will not be an issue. Furthermore, the Dutch side’s board is aware of ten Hag already accepting the contract conditions stated by United which all but confirms that ten Hag is headed to Old Trafford- a massive boost for the club considering there is a chance that we can seal the deal before the end of this season.
However, we may have to wait to see him on the sidelines with Rangnick having been appointed as the interim manager until the summer. Once the announcement is made official by United, ten Hag can then begin the process of understanding the task at hand here.
After months of hunting for suitable managerial candidates, it now seems that we are close to finalising a deal to snap up ten Hag from Ajax. The head coach’s CV is impressive, boasting multiple trophies won with the Dutch side.
However, the manager has not worked outside his native country, so it will be interesting to see how he fares in the Premier League, which is unforgiving of new players and coaches that fail to adapt to the fast-paced nature and physicality of the competition – that is, if the Dutchman is finally appointed as our new head coach.
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The expectation on him will be massive if he moves to Old Trafford, given that we have not won a trophy in five years. Our last piece of silverware was won in 2017, when we lifted the UEFA Europa League under Jose Mourinho’s reign.
A new era of success is expected to be ushered in by the new manager from next season, with the incoming boss tasked with turning the club into world beaters once again. Hopefully, we see ten Hag use his expertise from his fine work in Holland and recreate it in England, for our benefit.
