Erik ten Hag paid tribute to his childhood hero when asked which player he would love to work with the most in his managerial career. The Dutchman has made an instant impact at Manchester United with his meticulous attention to detail and his authoritative approach, and he is only just getting started on his work at the club.
In a Q&A with supporters, Ten Hag was quizzed on which player in the history of football he'd like to have worked with, taking the opportunity to pay tribute to a Dutch legend.
“I would prefer to have Johan Cruyff and to have him play for Manchester United," the United manager said. "It would be magnificent what he could contribute to this club.”
Read next: Sancho returns to training after two months
Cruyff, who passed away in 2016, is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport and has had a huge influence on modern football both as a player and a manager.
Just this week, an incredible video has emerged of the Ajax legend speaking on Dutch television to a group of young footballers, one of whom was Ten Hag.
The 13-year-old future United manager responded to Cruyff’s question on whether a coach should yell at young players with a fascinating answer.
“I think you should watch out that you don’t yell at the youth too much, because if a trainer yells at a player, it could really break the player, and therefore he could even quit playing,” Ten Hag said.
“But on a higher level, such as the first team of Ajax, you should be able to say something about it. Those guys train almost every day in the week. If they keep making the same mistakes, you should be able to confront them.”
Cruyff then asked, “So that means you differentiate between youth and paid football?”, to which Ten Hag simply responded: "Yes."
It's easy to see where Ten Hag draws his inspiration from.
READ MORE:
