OLIVER HOLT: Man United are rotting - Erik ten Hag should run a mile

In other circumstances, there would be much excitement about the idea of Erik ten Hag arriving as the new manager of Manchester United. 

He is the fresh start United fans have been craving, a man widely admired for his football philosophy, for the stellar job he has done at Ajax over the last four years, for the style with which his teams play and for his man-management.

He is not part of the tired establishment. He is not young but he is not a man on the downslope of his career. He is not old and cynical and looking for a last payday. He is not living on a reputation built on deeds done long ago. 

He is not a man who has fallen out of love with the game and modern players. He is not a man who will live in a suite at The Lowry Hotel and flit back and forth to London.

People who know him, and who have worked with him, speak well of him. 'His great strength lies not just in his attention to detail and organisation,' said former England manager Steve McClaren, who was once ten Hag's boss at FC Twente, in a recent interview. 

'He has a clear philosophy of how he wants to play football; the environment he wants to create. Erik is very disciplined and people have to buy into that and have that work ethic.'

Sure, there are others who have higher profiles and have managed bigger clubs, like Mauricio Pochettino. And there are those who might command more immediate respect from big-name players, like Antonio Conte. But ten Hag carries the air of someone who is ready for his close-up, ready for his shot at the big time.

The problem with Erik ten Hag becoming the new Manchester United manager, then, is not Erik ten Hag. The problem is Manchester United. 

He might not realise the extent of this yet — although watching United's abject