Erik ten Hag has claimed insistently he wasn’t scared of the massive challenge the job as Manchester United manager would pose after initially being told he could not succeed at Old Trafford.
The indefatigable Dutchman has revealed the warnings he had received earlier regarding not accepting the job as Manchester United manager.
Ten Hag has been at the helm at Old Trafford since the summer of 2022 after departing Ajax after five successful years and three Eredivisie titles to succeed interim boss Ralf Rangnick, himself a temporary replacement for the sacked Norwegian, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
After an impressive first season at the United helm, where he ably turned around the ship by ending their six-year trophy drought to lift the Carabao Cup after beating Newcastle at Wembley and also securing a third-place finish in the Premier League, things have turned a tad sour during his second season in charge, and the 53-year-old is now under constant pressure amid a myriad problems at the club both on the pitch and in the dressing room.
Talk of crisis has become a regular feature at United with players’showing rebellious dissent over their managers and it has been no different this season with suggestions of a dressing-room revolt against the manager over his methods. In fact, the club resorted to banning four media outlets from the Dutchman’s pre-match press conference earlier this week.
For the time being, the pressure has eased somewhat after an impressive 2-1 home victory over Chelsea on Wednesday, with sixth-placed United able to – for now, at least – bypass Tottenham into fifth and level on points with defending champions Manchester City in fourth if they beat Bournemouth at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Talking to the United We Stand fanzine, Ten Hag has now revealed that he initially received loads of advice not to take on one of the biggest jobs in club football.
“Everyone was telling me, ‘you can’t succeed in that job’,” he said.
“They said it was impossible. Me? I wanted the challenge.
“I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but it was such a great club with such a great fanbase.
“People love Manchester United, or they are against Manchester United. I like clubs like this. Ajax was like this.”