Erik ten Hag has reportedly contacted a legendary Manchester United striker about making a shock return to Old Trafford this summer.
Ten Hag clung onto his job this summer when many predicted that he would have been offloaded after a hugely disappointing Premier League and European campaign.
However, the manner in which United won the FA Cup against bitter rivals Manchester City and then failed in talks with Thomas Tuchel and Mauricio Pochettino meant the Dutchman remained in the hotseat.
The focus now, though, is on player ins and outs as well as what Ten Hag wants to do with his coaching staff ahead of the 2024/25 campaign – and that’s where a major surprise could be in the offing.
Fabrizio Romano reports that Ten Hag has contacted legendary Red Devils frontman Ruud van Nistelrooy to discuss a possible return as part of his new coaching set-up.
Van Nistelrooy established himself as one of United’s greatest-ever goalscorers during his spell at Old Trafford, scoring 150 goals in 219 appearances for the club.
The Dutchman helped the Red Devils win the Premier League in 2003 and two domestic trophies over the next two years before enjoying more individual and collective success at Real Madrid.
Since retiring in 2012, the 47-year-old has had several coaching stints in Holland and twice been assistant manager for the Netherlands national team.
His most recent post was with Eredivisie giants PSV, who he helped win the Dutch Cup and Dutch Super Cup before leaving in May 2023 because of a ‘lack of support within the club’.
Van Nistelrooy linked with Premier League return
Van Nistelrooy had been a target for recently-promoted Premier League side Leicester City before they decided to opt for Steve Cooper instead, while Burnley have also been keen after Vincent Kompany’s departure for Bayern Munich.
However, he could now be set for an emotional return to United, with Romano stating that Ten Hag has asked Van Nistelrooy about joining his coaching staff at the Theatre of Dreams.
Ten Hag, 54, is looking to gain any edge he can in a bid to make significant improvements to United’s form last season and sees the return of Van Nistelrooy as a positive appointment in his backroom.
Indeed, discussing United’s somewhat surprising decision to stick with Ten Hag, co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe recently said: “The coach isn’t the central issue at Manchester United.
“It’s a sports club. It needs to be competitive, it needs a degree of intensity, but with a supportive side to it because you are dealing with players who are relatively young. It hasn’t had that type of environment historically.
“It will take two or three summer windows to get to a better place. I’m not confident that we’ll solve all the problems in the first transfer window.”
