Report: United set to appoint ten Hag as manager

Manchester United has their man.

ESPN's Mark Ogden reports the Red Devils are finalizing the appointment of Ajax boss Erik ten Hag as the club's new manager for next season. Ten Hag will be the club's first permanent manager since the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in December. Ralf Rangnick has managed the club in the interim and will move into a consultancy role at season's end.

The 52-year-old Dutchman was preferred over Paris Saint-Germain manager Mauricio Pochettino. Spain manager Luis Enrique and Sevilla's Julen Lopetegui were also on the club's four-man shortlist. United was also reportedly interested in Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel and Bayern Munich's Julian Nagelsmann, but determined that neither would abandon their current posts.

A native of Haaksbergen, ten Hag was a centre-back in his playing days, suiting up for the likes of Twente and Utrecht over his 14-year playing career. After two seasons as manager of Dutch side Go Ahead Eagles, ten Hag became manager of Bayern Munich II in 2013, working under Pep Guardiola. He returned to the Netherlands in 2015 as manager of former side Utrecht before taking over at Ajax in 2017.

At Ajax, ten Hag has won a pair of Eredivisie titles and took the team to the Champions League semi-finals in 2019. Currently, Ajax has a four-point lead over PSV atop the Eredivisie table and has kept the club competitive despite the high-profile departures of Matthijs De Ligt, Frenkie de Jong, Hakim Ziyech and Donny van de Beek among others in recent years.

Ogden notes that United is expected to pay a £1.7 million compensation package to Ajax for ten Hag.

Among those being considered as ten Hag's No. 2 at Old Trafford are former England manager and United assistant Steve McClaren and