Why Erik ten Hag is the ideal manager over Pochettino for the Manchester United board

Erik ten Hag is currently coaching players from Southampton, West Ham, and Watford at Ajax, but he is a popular option among Manchester United fans to take over in the summer.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer restored Manchester United’s culture to the 1970s or 1980s. In 1974, United went nearly six years without using silver polish and was relegated. United’s trophy drought lasted nine years, but the club’s revival began with relegation.

Fans of a particular vintage will remember the 1974-75 season in Division Two following Doc’s Red Army as United steamrolled to promotion, with the upward trajectory continuing with a third-place finish back in the top flight and an FA Cup final against Southampton.

If it hadn’t been for an errant linesman, United’s return to the top flight could have been crowned with their first title since the European Cup in 1968. Manager Tommy Docherty pledged United would return to Wembley the following year to win it, which they did, therefore ending Liverpool’s Treble dreams.

Surprisingly, Docherty’s shift at United was so gradual. On an opening day four months later, ten of the players that started against City in April ’74 lined up at Leyton Orient. Stuart Pearson was Docherty’s only summer signing and was included in his team at Brisbane Road.

Squads are now so deep that elite teams can deploy three recognized XIs, and United’s player turnover this summer could be the highest since 2014. Five veteran players’ contracts are set to be terminated on July 1, and the list of free agents has surpassed ten.

That is the legacy of the Glazers. Joel Glazer’s family is so far away that the closest he has gotten to Old Trafford in the last three years is to send Tom Brady as his delegate. Richard Arnold has been quite prominent since Ed Woodward stepped down, and the new United CEO is talking with supporters on the fans’ advisory board in private.

There were thousands of people on the recent investor conference call, but actions speak louder than words. With no plinth required in the museum for the sixth consecutive season, United is under increasing pressure to complete the process of identifying their next manager as soon as possible.

It’s analogous to pre-production on a film when the producers and director must decide on a star before casting around them. The destiny of a number of players will be dictated by United’s next manager, even though the majority of decisions should have already been made.

John Murtough and Darren Fletcher should not seek authorization from Erik ten Hag to sell Eric Bailly, Phil Jones, and Anthony Martial. Mauricio Pochettino desired Martial at Tottenham, and if he were to achieve his ambition of managing Manchester United, perhaps Martial would be granted a respite.

It would have to be an enticing case. Martial is 26 years old, out of contract in two years, has had two strong seasons out of seven, and his mindset is the polar opposite of what United requires from their new order. ” ‘When he (Ralf Rangnick) arrived, my goal was to depart,’ he explained this week.

Ten Hag would be the more compliant choice if United focused on progress rather than revolution. Ten Hag has returned Ajax to their rightful place in the Dutch league, constructing two vibrant squads on either side of the sales of Matthijs de Ligt and Frenkie de Jong in 2019 while avoiding a checkbook reputation. Pochettino was prone to combative soundbites when it came to recruitment at Tottenham (“I am not in charge and I know nothing about the situation of my players.”).

Ten Hag awoke the sleeping giant in Ajax’s return season of 2018-19 when the club broke a five-year title drought and advanced to the Champions League’s last four. Ten Hag’s ability to develop young players is clear, as is his endurance – he has been in charge of Ajax for nearly four and a half years.

Ten Hag, on the other hand, is not the best-qualified coach to lead United’s biggest team reconstruction in eight years. Ajax has departed the Champions League at the group stage two years in a row and lost to Benfica in the last 16 since the atypical campaign in which they were a Lucas Moura shot away from reaching the final.

The focal points in Dusan Tadic, Sebastian Haller, and Steven Berghuis are Premier League rejects for Ten Hag’s teams. The Eredivisie is a flat-track bully league for veterans as well as a midway house for young players. Memphis Depay and Donny van de Beek, on the other hand, went in the opposite direction and were flops at United. De Ligt has endured a tumultuous time with Juventus.

Ajax’s wage bill is €95 million. It is £284 million at United. At £20.2 million, Haller is Ajax’s most expensive signing. In 2016, Paul Pogba set a world record fee of £89 million. Ajax appears to be free of uncontrollable egos. They are in plenty at United.

Character is just as important as coaching. Ten Hag cannot prepare for the severe scrutiny that awaits him at United since the club is unlike any other on the earth. He finds peace by the Amster River, where Ajax stays in their bicycle path, and inquests are submitted in May. It happens once a month at United.

“We give [players] permission to go at a certain point,” Edwin van der Sar told The Sunday Times three years ago. Van der Sar had the benefit of playing behind Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic for almost all of his six years in Manchester, so he could give Ten Hag suggestions.

Murtough was his usual amiable self at Old Trafford last week, pressing the flesh and addressing reporters by name before of Wolves’ FA Youth Cup semi-final success. Only three days prior, he sat in the directors’ box as United was thrashed 4-1 at City for the third time this century.

The post-mortems were bloody, but Murtough has remained cheerful, and the Youth Cup has given United some reprieve. Murtough co-managed the academy in 2015-16, and his joy after defeating Chelsea in December 2018, one of Kieran McKenna’s lasting legacies, was contagious.

Murtough motioned to McKenna at Leigh Sports Village and remarked, “Brilliant.” McKenna’s proteges Brandon Williams, James Garner, and Teden Mengi were all in the team that evening, and technical director Darren Fletcher said the trio would be part in pre-season. Ten Hag is considering another academy project with Ethan Laird.

One thing you can count on with Ten Hag is that you’ll know who you’re dealing with. United had it with Docherty as well.