Manchester United players have already apparently expressed one major doubt surrounding Erik ten Hag ahead of the Dutchman’s arrival at Old Trafford.
The current Ajax boss has already been confirmed as the club’s next boss following a lengthy process since they sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. German Ralf Rangnick was entrusted with the responsibility on an interim basis ahead of moving into a consultancy role ahead of next season.
There were tentative links to current Paris Saint-Germain head coach Mauricio Pochettino but Ten Hag is to be the man to take the reins - and will certainly hope to restore the Old Trafford club to their former glory sooner rather than later following a hugely underwhelming 2021/22 campaign.
The Red Devils were defeated 3-1 by Arsenal at the weekend and look on the verge of missing out on Champions League football next term. Whilst there is optimism that Ten Hag will lift the mood at the club following his arrival from Ajax, it appears that doubts have already started to creep into the dressing room regarding his appointment.
According to The Times, whilst some players are looking forward to working with the Dutchman, some have a concern over whether he is a strong enough personality to reverse the current mire that the club find themselves in. Ten Hag already has a few decisions to make over the state of his current squad.
Jesse Lingard, Edinson Cavani, Paul Pogba and Juan Mata are all out of contract at the end of the current season, whilst midfielder enforcer Nemanja Matic has already indicated his desire to leave the club sooner rather than later.
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Despite that, Ten Hag has indicated his excitement at taking control of the club once having penned a contract until the summer of 2025. Speaking to United’s official website, he said: “It is a great honour to be appointed manager of Manchester United and I am hugely excited by the challenge ahead.
“I know the history of this great club and the passion of the fans, and I am absolutely determined to develop a team capable of delivering the success they deserve. It will be difficult to leave Ajax after these incredible years, and I can assure our fans of my complete commitment and focus on bringing this season to a successful conclusion before I move to Manchester United.”
The 52-year-old could potentially arrive in Manchester a league champion, with his current side Ajax sitting four points clear at the top of the Eredivisie. Should the Amsterdam outfit run out successful once more, it would represent Ten Hag’s third league success with the club, whilst he has also twice claimed the Dutch Cup.
Manchester United meanwhile have not lifted silverware since winning the Europa League under the stewardship of Jose Mourinho in 2017. They were runners-up in the same competition last term under Solskjaer before his sacking in November.
