23 October 2023 , 20:09
1078
0
Manchester United assistant Mitchell van der Gaag has assured the club that he has no interest in becoming the new coach of Ajax.
Van der Gaag was identified by Louis van Gaal as the ideal candidate to replace Maurice Steijn after the former United boss was asked to take up an advisory role with the Amsterdam club following a terrible start to the season. Steijn was sacked on Monday in the aftermath of a 4-3 defeat at fellow strugglers Volendam which has left Ajax just one place off the bottom of the Eredivisie.
But they will not be pursuing Van der Gaag after the 51-year-old made clear his intention to stay loyal to United boss Erik ten Hag. The news will give the Reds a huge lift on the eve of their must-win Champions League clash with Copenhagen at Old Trafford.
Van der Gaag has become an important sounding board for Ten Hag after working as his assistant for two years at Ajax before following him to Manchester in the summer of 2022. Ajax made him their top target when it became Steijn was living on borrowed time and were looking to see if he had an escape clause in his United contract and how much the compensation package would be.
Van Gaal, 72, answered an SOS to come out of retirement to advise Ajax on their options to rebuild their season and is a huge admirer of Van der Gaag. But the Dutchman is settled working alongside Ten Hag and feels they have unfinished business at Old Trafford despite an inconsistent start to the season.
Marcel Sabitzer completes Man Utd transfer after last-minute deadline day dash
Ajax have asked Stein’s assistant Hedwiges Maduro to take temporary change of the first team and are in talks with John van t’ Schip to become coach for the rest of the season. Ajax have won just one of their opening seven games and were beaten at Volendam despite fighting back from 2-0 down to lead.
Van der Gaag became Ten Hag’s assistant after spending two impressive seasons working with Ajax’s under-21 team. He is fluent in five languages, including Portuguese and Spanish, which helps with communication in the dressing room.
His departure would have left a huge hole in United’s backroom team. Ajax were disappointed when Ten Hag left to become United boss and then took Van der Gaag with him.
That was compounded when United swooped to sign Antony and Lisandro Martinez. Van Gaal has also never forgiven the Manchester club for sacking him as manager in 2016, just 24 hours after his team had lifted the FA Cup.
Ten Hag’s successor Alfred Schreuder was sacked after 26 games and replaced by Johnny Heitinga for the rest of the season. Now they have acted ruthlessly again by firing Steijn.