The moment when Manchester United resolved to go for Erik ten Hag can be traced back to a day in Amsterdam when the 52-year-old mapped out his long-term vision for the side.
United football director John Murtough, technical director Darren Fletcher and chief executive Richard Arnold flew to the Dutch capital for talks on March 21 after Ajax granted permission and were taken aback by Ten Hag’s forthright views.
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The triumvirate left that meeting extremely impressed at hearing how Ten Hag proposed to improve United, gaining first-hand insight into a manager with meticulous planning and a focused approach. He did not sugarcoat his thoughts.
United executives in fact held multiple direct meetings with Ten Hag and his representatives, one of which was the first interview in Amsterdam, and at each point they came away with their impression of him enhanced.
Ten Hag was very much at the forefront of United minds as early as January, having emerged top of the club’s data analysis of all candidates, when factoring in underlying metrics and transfer spend. A large dossier on managers was compiled but from that point on Ten Hag was more compelling than the others.
It can be revealed that, during the course of the search, United also met directly with Mauricio Pochettino, the PSG and former Spurs manager whose representatives got as far as holding talks with an Old Trafford executive over a possible contract, and Julen Lopetegui, the former Spain and Real Madrid coach now with Sevilla.
Ten Hag has assessed the current squad and discussed future signings with United to a detailed degree, but his attentions for the rest of the season will be on attempting to clinch a third Eredivisie title with Ajax — his work in the Netherlands is described as an obsession — and he will not be part of recruitment meetings at his new club. Nor will he be poring over United games.
Ten Hag insisted on telling Ajax players directly before the official announcement of his move to Old Trafford was made at 11.10am UK time on Thursday. Simultaneously, Murtough formally told United’s squad of the incoming manager at Carrington.
The Athletic understands that United have negotiated Ten Hag’s release from Ajax outside of the minimum €2 million (£1.7 million) release clause, which only became active between May 16 (the date of Ajax’s final game) and June 15.
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Talks are now set to take place to assemble Ten Hag’s coaching staff, with negotiations at an advanced stage for Mitchell van der Gaag, his assistant at Ajax.
Steve McClaren is also under serious consideration, having worked with Ten Hag at FC Twente. Ten Hag has proposed McClaren to United and proper discussions are set to take place.
Now conversations can happen freely, it is described as a live situation, with Ten Hag’s exact team yet to be established. United feel there is benefit in Ten Hag seeing what is already in place at Carrington, although Ralf Rangnick’s coaches Chris Armas and Ewan Sharp are expected to leave once the summer comes.
One stellar name has come up in discussions, The Athletic has learned. Wayne Rooney was informally proposed as a possibility for the coaching staff. But Rooney has made it clear he would only leave Derby County for a No 1 position. He turned down the Everton job after Rafael Benitez’s dismissal when asked to interview.
Robin van Persie has also been mentioned but the former United striker was ruled out on the basis of being unable to gain a work permit in a post-Brexit landscape.
In this account of how Ten Hag joined United, The Athletic also details:
- The consultancy role played by Mike Forde, a former Chelsea director
- Why a Zoom meeting with Joel and Avram Glazer proved pivotal
- How United players were kept in the dark, with a reported preference for Pochettino going down badly
- What happened in interactions over Luis Enrique and Thomas Tuchel
United’s options were laid out at the start of January as Ed Woodward prepared to leave the club. United’s outgoing executive vice-chairman told friends Ten Hag and Pochettino would come under consideration, with Brendan Rodgers an outside contender.
Rodgers slipped from the reckoning as Leicester’s results drifted, with Ten Hag and Pochettino becoming the leading candidates. Lopetegui, having first been recommended to United by Jorge Mendes as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer skirted close to the brink last November, came back onto the radar.
The ambitious choice making up the four-man list, as reported by The Athletic at the end of January, was Enrique.
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United knew that a pursuit of Enrique would be complex given his commitment to Spain, but staff did speak to him in the final week of March to enquire about an exit before the World Cup. The answer was clear that Enrique would lead Spain at Qatar in November and as United did not wish to extend Rangnick’s interim status, talks were shelved. Still, it was viewed at Old Trafford as a useful chance to develop a relationship with a leading manager in Enrique, who won the treble with Barcelona in 2015.
In February, Murtough and Fletcher met with Arnold to discuss their initial thoughts. Around this time agents at one major firm were told Ten Hag stood out for United. Arnold asked for detailed assessments on all four managers and Murtough and Fletcher placed calls to contacts to gain a fuller picture.
One early reservation for some at Old Trafford about Ten Hag centred on his ability to take on a club the scale of United. Donny van de Beek had thrived in Ajax’s structure only to struggle in the Premier League and United sources believed the scrutiny at United was a psychological factor for the player. Ten Hag’s only experience of managing outside the Netherlands, at Bayern Munich’s reserve team under Pep Guardiola, was seen as an aspect deserving of reflection.
The points of debate on Pochettino, meanwhile, were two-fold. Internal discussions touched firstly on whether he had already done his career-best work and United might be getting him too late, as with Jose Mourinho. Secondly, Pochettino was not enjoying the dynamics at Paris Saint-Germain and it was perceived that a similar scenario could develop at United.
It is believed Arnold met with Sir Alex Ferguson in this period as part of his attempts to get to grips with the club after becoming chief executive. Ferguson has long advocated for Pochettino, having lunched with the-then Tottenham Hotspur boss at Scott’s restaurant in Mayfair in 2016.
Heading into March, some leading intermediaries were, mistakenly it transpires, of a view the job was Pochettino’s to lose. United held talks with Pochettino, which sources describe as “positive”, and topics covered included how the squad might look next season.
Pochettino himself was said to feel confident of getting a proposal after a courtship dating back years. Woodward had first met him at a Holiday Inn around the M25 in late 2018 and there was a sounding-out through agents last November when Solskjaer was sacked. But United, aware of the difficulties of extracting Pochettino from PSG, always progressed the interim pursuit, with Rangnick the preferred choice.
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The complications of hiring Pochettino from PSG surfaced again during the process for a permanent manager. The premise remained that PSG did not wish to lose face by seeing their manager taken by another club and would dig in for significant compensation, believed to be close to £10 million according to reports in France.
Then there were rivals to United. After PSG beat Real Madrid 1-0 in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 tie at Parc des Princes, PSG were left with the impression that Florentino Perez, president of the Spanish club, wished to poach Pochettino.
But fate’s fickle finger intervened and, after the collapse in the Bernabeu, PSG’s resolve to keep Pochettino softened, with one high-level source saying, “anyone who wants to leave, the door is open”. That did not mean PSG would allow Pochettino to depart for free, but the idea diminished that United would have to pay an eight-figure sum, and this was communicated to those at Old Trafford. It is thought £5 million or less might have worked.
Still though sources felt there was brinksmanship at play. According to those close to the situation, PSG were aware there was a chance to save money on the cost of sacking Pochettino — estimated by L’Equipe to be £17 million — by negotiating with United. But at the same time, United knew making the first move would give PSG the stronger hand. Pochettino is said to have felt he could not push because that would weaken his position for any contract talks at United. In the end, nobody blinked.
Quite what impact Karim Benzema’s hat-trick in Madrid had on United’s feelings is unclear but sources privately stressed that one bad result would not dictate the club’s approach, with PSG routinely falling out of the Champions League in dramatic fashion.
Another aspect to consider were the reports that surfaced in early February stating United players preferred Pochettino. Whatever the origins of such a sentiment, the reaction at Carrington was indifferent. Sources say there were conversations, somewhat tongue-in-cheek, that if Pochettino was who the players wanted then United should choose a different option. Staff expressed the conviction that player power had been an issue since Ferguson’s retirement. The players would not be consulted by United executives at any point in the process.
Similarly, Rangnick’s involvement was minimal. United preferred him to concentrate on preparing the team. Any discussions about the next manager were kept brief.
Meanwhile, on March 10, a curve ball arrived when the UK government sanctioned Roman Abramovich. Tuchel’s position at Chelsea became uncertain and United began asking questions about him. Word initially reached Arnold that Tuchel would be open to hearing United’s pitch. Ultimately it became clear that Tuchel wanted to see what approach Chelsea’s next owners would take with the club and United did not have that time to wait.
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Instead, United pressed on with the managers that were attainable, and Ten Hag had his interview with United in Amsterdam. Arnold, Murtough, and Fletcher flew out the day after Ajax had twice come from behind to defeat rivals Feyenoord late on in a crucial game.
Suffice to say, Ten Hag made an excellent impression. One of the reported criticisms from his talks with Spurs last summer was over his English-language abilities, but it is understood that the North London club loved his style of play. Steve Hitchen pushed for his appointment but Daniel Levy wanted to go in a different direction. As Spurs hesitated on making an offer, Ten Hag gave his word to Ajax about staying.
Nearly 12 months on, there was little pause for United, who found him charismatic and his communication excellent. The meeting went so well that the first signs of their intentions could be detected.
It can be revealed that United tapped into the expertise of Mike Forde, the former Chelsea director who is now executive chairman of Sportsology, a company specialising in helping organisations realise their full potential. Forde is a consultant on the payroll of the Glazer family and was also involved in recruiting Rangnick.
Ten Hag had other options, though, reportedly including RB Leipzig.
In the final days of March, United sources insisted there were still three candidates: Ten Hag, Pochettino and Lopetegui. It was questioned internally why Lopetegui’s chances were flying under the radar, as an experienced manager with good work at Spain and Sevilla on his CV.
There were others who wondered if United would be seriously considering him were Mendes not his agent. Lopetegui would go on to state his commitment to Sevilla, although United did not take that as definitive were they to change course and try for the 55-year-old.
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The direction of travel appeared clear, with Murtough and Fletcher leaning towards Ten Hag. Arnold stepped up involvement and assurances were given that Ten Hag was United’s No 1 candidate.
A poll by Gary Neville on Twitter, which resulted in 82 per cent of 219,000 respondents picking Ten Hag over Pochettino, was noted at Old Trafford, but not a factor in the decision. United received details on Ten Hag’s release clause. His representatives SEG had negotiated an exit for just €2 million when signing a new contract last summer, amid interest from multiple suitors.
United and SEG agents have done a fair amount of work together, agreeing the transfers of Van Persie and Memphis Depay, and working closely with Ferguson, David Gill, and Woodward and that long-term relationship helped this deal. (SEG also represent Pep Guardiola so will have the managers of both Manchester clubs.)
Nevertheless United were aware that a meeting with RB Leipzig could see Ten Hag shake hands on a deal from which he would not renege. Ten Hag also had a number of conversations with Ajax, who were desperate for him to stay for one more season.
Discussions with United continued and turned to potential coaching staff. They reached early agreement that they would like Van der Gaag to come with Ten Hag from Ajax, moving from his place in the stands to the bench, but both sides felt at least one assistant with Premier League experience would be useful. Rangnick had failed to get his primary coaching targets due to the quick turnaround and United did not want a repeat. English football was new to Armas and Ewan Sharp, who have led sessions at Carrington.
United had a long list names but wanted to whittle it down to a small selection of preferred potential candidates. McClaren, who Ten Hag assisted at FC Twente, was raised for a return to United. McClaren had been Ferguson’s No 2 during the treble in 1999 and before talks began, Ten Hag approached his former boss for advice on United, with the conversation centring on the enormity of the club. McClaren felt Ten Hag would be able to handle United with the right support structure.
Ten Hag is believed to have been keen on building a backroom team comprising specialist coaches for different disciplines, as well as varying ages and levels of experience — but with quality the priority.
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Only then did the Glazers speak to Ten Hag. It was a pivotal moment, as Joel and Avram Glazer held a lengthy meeting with the Dutchman. They asked him questions and vice versa. Both parties are thought to have been impressed with each other.
As talks advanced to Ten Hag’s contract and logistics around the proposed deal, news broke of United’s intentions. The timing was awkward, as Pochettino had yet to be informed of the developments.
Two months before, Pochettino had been properly gathering information about Manchester as a city, the structure of the club and the personality of United players. As late as April, his representatives even held a Zoom call with Judge over possible contract finances, with PSG relaxed about the situation. However, senior PSG sources insist that United at no point this season made direct contact with the French club’s hierarchy to discuss extricating Pochettino from Paris. United planned to call Pochettino to inform directly of their decision before the announcement came.
All agreed to wait until after Ajax had played their Dutch Cup final against PSV Eindhoven on April 17 to avoid distractions in the build-up. Ajax lost the game in a contest that saw trouble between supporters. But Ten Hag already has two league-and-cup doubles to point to as evidence of his winning mentality. United will hope he can be the manager to finally replicate that in the Premier League.
Ten Hag will fully get to grips with United in June, working with Murtough, Fletcher and head of recruitment Steve Brown over signings. The departures of chief scout Jim Lawlor and head of global scouting Marcel Bout, as revealed by The Athletic, are significant but do not alter the dynamic at United too greatly.
Ten Hag is happy to fit into the structure at United ahead of what should be a major summer. Darwin Nunez, whose goal for Benfica knocked Ten Hag’s Ajax out of the Champions League, is one target United are looking at. Ten Hag has shown with Ajax an adaptability in the market.
Other contributors: Adam Crafton
(Top image: Sam Richardson for The Athletic)