Edwin van der Sar was the CEO of Ajax as Erik ten Hag made his move to Manchester United.
Erik ten Hag was appointed as Manchester United manager in 2022 and arrived with a great reputation following his success in the Netherlands.
He led Ajax to three Eredivisie titles and took them to the semi-final of the Champions League in 2019 before they lost in heartbreaking fashion to Tottenham.
At Old Trafford, he was unable to replicate that success. United had a grim European record under Ten Hag, with the Dutchman failing to win any of his three Europa League games this season.
Ten Hag was sacked by United in late October and Ruben Amorim has been welcomed at Carrington as his successor.
What Edwin van der Sar said about Erik ten Hag after Man United sack
Since being sacked, Ten Hag has been tipped for a chairman role after being spotted at multiple matches in the Netherlands including back at Ajax.
United legend Edwin van der Sar followed a similar path after retiring as a player, with the former goalkeeper becoming CEO of Ajax in 2016. After spending four years with him in Amsterdam, Van Der Sar sent Ten Hag a message after joining United.
Speaking to ex-teammate Rio Ferdinand on ‘Rio Ferdinand Presents’, Van der Sar lifted the lid on what it was like working with Ten Hag.
Van der Sar said: “I think he is hard-working, he is loyal, he is someone who brought us a lot of success with great football.”
The Dutch shot-stopper then appeared to hint that United had failed Ten Hag when it came to recruitment.
“I think we [Ajax] also facilitated him,” he continued. “We brought in Dusan Tadic who was a good player at Southampton but with us a tremendous player, a player that gave us belief and conviction.
“We spoke about the club and the history of course, but I think he prepared himself well for the job. He delivered two trophies in the first two years.”
Erik ten Hag’s recruitment record as Man United manager
It seems that Van der Sar was hinting at Ten Hag not being provided with a goalscoring forward, and he is not the only player who thought so. Peter Schmeichel suggested United failed Ten Hag when it came to recruitment.
But there can be no complaints about the money spent during Ten Hag’s time in Manchester.
The Red Devils forked out over £600m on new signings during his time as manager. Ten Hag signed multiple Ajax players but only a few of those deals turned out to be successful. Gary Neville claimed Ten Hag spent £150m on two of United’s worst signings.
Ten Hag was given a lot of control over the recruitment process which is something Ineos have been keen to stamp out with Amorim’s arrival.
from United In Focus https://ift.tt/rLc0Wai