Erik ten Hag insists he has no bias for Dutch-bred signings.
You can safely assume at this point that every player we sign has played under Ten Hag at some point. I joke, but it has become a theme for every transfer window we’ve had with Ten Hag as manager.
Three of United’s four summing signings – Joshua Zirkzee, Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui – were born or played in the Netherlands and 11 out of Ten Hag’s 20 recruits have played in his homeland.
However, United are operating differently in this window. The Glazers aren’t getting in the way and INEOS are showing why they are best suited to running football operations at the club.
United hired a new chief executive and technical director earlier this year, while Dan Ashworth was appointed our inaugural sporting director. That has not changed the approach to targeting players who have played in the Netherlands.
The influence doesn’t only come from Ten Hag since United appointed two new Dutch assistant coaches, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Rene Hake, to Ten Hag’s backroom team as well as goalkeeping coach Jelle ten Rouwellar.
Ten Hag was asked about targeting Dutch players in his pre-match press conference ahead of United’s Premier League opener against Fulham.
“Not for favourite,” Ten Hag said, as quoted by the Manchester Evening News. “First of all, it is club decisions, none of them is only my decision. It is always backed or even brought up through the scouting, recruitment, technical director, sporting director, it is a decision made by more than only one. But, some, you know also players and personalities and it has to fit also in the finance.”
I don’t care where our signings come from as long as they improve the team and help United win silverware.
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