A jubilant Manchester United gaffer Erik Ten Hag declares he has his focus set on making history at the Old Trafford club after winning his first trophy for the Red Devils at Wembley on Sunday.
The Dutchman and former Ajax manager has sight his sight on winning more silverware after leading the club to their first trophy on Sunday after an inglorious, and arduous long haul of six years.
United dug in to produce the best they could whip up to beat Newcastle 2-0 at Wembley to claim a first trophy under the Dutch tactician, who had understudied none other than the highly-revered manager supremo Pep Guardiola at Bayern Munich when the latter was the manager there after having left Barcelona after his world-shaking triumphant spell at Camp Nou.
“We have to invest and suffer every day so we can win trophies,” Ten Hag said after the game.
“It is about glory and honor. If you want to win something you have to do it because no one is going to bring you silverware in top football.”
Ten Hag left Ajax for United last summer and took over the reins from Rangnick at Old Trafford at a time when the club was undergoing an immensely difficult period even well before club legend Ole Gunnar Soskjaer had been sacked.
“Maybe it was a risk but I am a little bit stubborn,” he said. “I just loved United. When I see the shirt, when I see the fans at Old Trafford, the legacy from Sir Alex [Ferguson] with players known around the world.
“We want to do the same. This team wants to make its own history, its own legacy. When the opportunity came I thought this is the right opportunity for me. I wanted to be part of it.”
Ten Hag met Ferguson for dinner last week and invited United’s former manager into the dressing room after this win at Wembley.
“The dinner shows we are good and it shows he is really involved in the club,” he said. “We can all learn a lot from what he did for Manchester United. It is an inspiration for all of us.
“Of course it is an honor to share my thoughts with him, to talk about how you lead a dressing room and the strategies. He is a happy man tonight.”