I never expected to join Manchester United - one phone call from Erik ten Hag changed everything

Ruud van Nistelrooy has explained how a phone call from Erik ten Hag changed his managerial career plans upon being offered a coaching role at Manchester United.

The former United striker said he had held talks with several other clubs with a view to continuing his career as a head coach, having left his position at PSV Eindhoven 18 months earlier. However, he described the opportunity at Old Trafford as one he could not turn down.

“This is 100 per cent the right decision,” he told TNT Sports. “I felt a strong feeling that I want to help build United little by little back to where we feel and know where the club should be.”

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Van Nistelrooy joined Ten Hag’s backroom staff over the summer alongside Rene Hake, a long-time friend of the United boss who had just guided Go Ahead Eagles to their highest finish in the Eredivisie for 15 years.

United have witnessed a number of changes in the dugout from last season, with coaches Benni McCarthy and Mitchell van der Gaag leaving before Steve McClaren’s exit to take charge of the Jamaica national team.

Van Nistelrooy outlined how he had not anticipated the call from United at the start of the summer and had been speaking with clubs about his next steps in management - saying he even had his own backroom team all lined up to work underneath him before he spoke to Ten Hag. He explained: “I was on a managerial track. I managed PSV, it was an unbelievable experience.

“I was in talks with clubs to manage and I love it [managing]. I had my staff all ready and then I had a phone call. I never even saw this as a possibility. Erik called me