Erik ten Hag strolled onto the Camp Nou pitch on Wednesday night, gazing around at one, if not the, most iconic stadium in world football.
The Manchester United manager was probably envisioning his side's Europa League play-off tie against Barcelona, as the pair of European heavyweights meet this Thursday for what promises to be an epic first-leg clash. But what Ten Hag might also have been thinking is what could've been?
Long before the 53-year-old put pen to paper on a three-season contract with United, he was coveted across Europe thanks to his acclaimed work at Ajax. Like the Red Devils, Barcelona have spent the past few years spiralling away from success and reportedly considered hiring Ten Hag to replace sacked boss Ronald Koeman in October 2021.
While enjoying another promising campaign with Ajax, which would prove to be his last, Ten Hag learned that he was on Barca's radar, another club that the late Johan Cruyff - one of his idols - was intrinsically linked to. Camp Nou chiefs weren't merely interested in him either, according to Catalunya Radio.
In fact, they claim Barcelona president Joan Laporta identified the Ajax boss as 'the chosen one' to succeed Koeman at the end of last season. Ten Hag is alleged to have given plenty of thought to the role, too, sizing up signings and assessing who he wanted out of a declining Barca squad after reaching an agreement in principle with Laporta.
Ex-Barcelona star Thierry Henry has even gone on record to reveal that he personally recommended the Dutchman to his old employers. "I will be honest, I am a big fan of Ten Hag and I like him very much," Henry recently told CBS Sports. "He is the coach I recommended to Laporta after Koeman got sacked at Barca. He is a genius."
Also admired by both Pep Guardiola, who worked with him at Bayern Munich, and Jordi Cruyff - the son of Johan, who's risen to becoming Barca's sporting director in recent years - Ten Hag and his work with Ajax is said to have won over board members, and his potential appointment was becoming more and more tangible.
Top of his shopping list was Matthijs de Ligt, who Ten Hag handed the captaincy to at Ajax aged just 19, making him the Eredivisie giants' youngest ever skipper. Erling Haaland was also mentioned alongside Spanish playmaker Dani Olmo, Ajax starlet Ryan Gravenberch and his former team-mate, Donny van de Beek, who was then enduring his second frustrating season with United.
Ten Hag, who was set to work closely with the younger Cruyff, accepted that he'd have to clear the decks and ease Barca's wage bill, with their financial woes well documented three months after losing Lionel Messi. The move from Amsterdam to Catalunya, a well-trodden route, seemed like a good fit and Ten Hag was allegedly ready to take the next step in his budding managerial career.
Events didn't transpire that way, though, as after a torrid run of form heading into the winter, Laporta sacked Koeman not even halfway through the term. Xavi Hernandez, another former player and even more of a club legend, was parachuted in from Qatari side Al-Sadd and Ten Hag's chances of taking the Camp Nou hot-seat significantly decreased.
Step forward, United. While Barcelona opted for a permeant appointment to replace Koeman, a month later the Red Devils were keen to hire an interim manager, Ralf Rangick, before going through a thorough process to appoint Ole Gunnar Solskjaer 's successor.
Ten Hag soon emerged as the favourite and on April 21, was announced as United's new boss. Similarly to the impressive strides which Xavi has made at the Camp Nou, such as their eight-point lead at the top of LaLiga, Ten Hag looks to have put the 20-time English champions on the right track back towards the top table of European football.
Have your say! Should Barcelona have waited for Ten hag? Let us know your verdict in the comments section .
The Red Devils head into Thursday's mouth-watering clash as the only elite-level team in Europe who are still competing in four competitions. With a Carabao Cup final with Newcastle on the horizon and results currently going their way to keep them in the Premier League title race, Ten Hag's start to life at Old Trafford has arguably been more promising than any of his predecessors.
Properly replacing Sir Alex Ferguson 's impact on the club has been rendered an impossible task since his retirement in 2013, but no manager has quite grabbed the bull by the horns like Ten Hag. As well as things are going for him in Manchester, however, a look across to the home dugout when Xavi takes his seat on Thursday could prompt a brief daydream, pondering on what might've been had he been the man to reignite the Camp Nou.
