Manchester United are in the process of finalizing Erik ten Hag as their next manager, says ESPN. Further reports indicate that the current AFC Ajax head coach could add Steve McClaren or Rene Meulensteen to his coaching staff once appointed.
As per the report, the Manchester United hierarchy has agreed on ten Hag as the next managerial candidate; the job is currently with Ralf Rangnick, albeit on an interim basis after he replaced club legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer midway through the season.
The Dutchman has been linked closely with the English giants for months and, after a drawn-out process, is expected to pip Mauricio Pochettino, Luis Enrique, and Julen Lopetegui to the job.
According to the Daily Mail, Rangnick will move into a consultancy role at the end of the campaign and will work only six days a month for the Red Devils.
Furthermore, the club are also considering bringing back Rene Meulensteen to join ten Hag’s backroom staff. Meulensteen served as an assistant to Sir Alex Ferguson from 2007 to 2013, following which he had short stints at Anzhi Makhachkala, Fulham, Maccabi Haifa, and Kerala Blasters. The Dutchman – who also coached in the Manchester United academy between 2001 and 2006 – is presently Graham Arnold’s assistant for the Australia national team.
Meanwhile, as per a report from The Guardian, former Newcastle United and England manager Steven McClaren is also under consideration to serve as ten Hag’s no. 2 should the Dutchman land the Old Trafford job.
Like Meulensteen, McClaren, too, was an assistant under Ferguson between 1999 and 2001, following which he went on to enjoy a long, successful career in senior management. Ten Hag himself previously worked under McClaren; the former was the assistant manager when the Englishman was the coach of Eredivisie side FC Twente from 2008 to 2010.
