Manchester United has chosen Ajax manager Erik ten Hag as their new manager, succeeding interim Ralf Rangnick, who will leave at the end of the season. He was in pole position to beat Mauricio Pochettino to the post on March 31, with sources close to the manager and Ajax suggesting compensation of less than £2 million. The 52-year-old has agreed to a three-year contract with a one-year extension option.
Erik Ten Hag told United’s website: “It is a great honor to be appointed manager of Manchester United and I am hugely excited by the challenge ahead.” Following a thorough recruitment process overseen by Murtough and technical director Darren Fletcher, he was said to be the consensus pick at United. The executive vice-chairman, Richard Arnold, was also present, and the trio is said to have agreed that Erik Ten Hag was the finest candidate for the job.
United also evaluated Mauricio Pochettino, the Paris Saint-Germain manager who previously managed Tottenham and Southampton, and Julen Lopetegui, the Sevilla manager, but it is thought that the Dutchman was the best fit for the club’s long-term goals. During talks with United, Ten Hag is claimed to have laid out his long-term ambition for building a successful and exciting club, as well as expressing enthusiasm for the job he currently faces at Old Trafford.
The positive relationship between United and Ajax aided in the appointment of Ten Hag. If United had chosen Pochettino, it is thought that negotiations with PSG would have been more difficult.
Since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013, Erik Ten Hag will be United’s fifth permanent manager. In the nine years afterward, the team has only won three trophies: the FA Cup, League Cup, and Europa League, and they are in danger of missing out on Champions League qualification next season. With Rangnick destined to take up a consultancy post at Old Trafford this summer, Ten Hag will supervise a much-needed renovation at United.
