Ajax have sacked manager Maurice Steijn and it is believed club chiefs are big admirers of Manchester United’s assistant manager Mitchell van der Gaag.
Erik ten Hag brought Van der Gaag with him to Manchester United from Ajax in the summer of 2022, but his assistant coach was identified as the ideal candidate to replace Steijn by Louis van Gaal.
The former United manager was approached to take up an advisory role at the Amsterdam club following a dismal start to the season. Van Gaal came out of retirement to accept the offer.
The decision to sack Steijn was made on Monday, but it was coming for some time, and Van der Gaag has already been linked with a return to Ajax. The Dutch giants are currently just one place off the bottom of the Eredivisie.
Thankfully, Ten Hag has nothing to worry about if a new report can be believed.
According to The Mirror, Van der Gaag has made clear his intention to stay loyal to Ten Hag and won’t be returning to Ajax anything soon.
The 51-year-old is one of Ten Hag’s most trusted coaches at United, along with Steve McClaren.
We know from Sir Alex Ferguson’s successful spell in charge that assistant managers come and go. That said, I think it’s a positive that Van der Gaag wants to continue his work at United because there’s a lot of work to be done to fix things on the pitch this season.
Moreover, it says something if he’s willing to turn down the Ajax job.
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