Erik ten Hag has admitted he had ‘confrontational’ talks with INEOS about his future following Manchester United’s FA Cup victory last season.
It was confirmed Ten Hag would keep his position as Red Devils boss back in June, with a contract extension keeping him at the club until 2026 being signed in July.
The Dutchman’s future had been a hot topic surrounding the build-up and fallout of the final win, given Manchester United’s poor Premier League season and their exit from the Champions League in the group stages.
They had finished eighth in the top flight, a record low.
However, their shock victory over Man City at Wembley was seen by many as a redeeming achievement for the coach, who took his trophy tally at the club to two, having won the Carabao Cup in his first season in charge.
Despite considering replacements, including Thomas Tuchel, Mauricio Pochettino and even Gareth Southgate – minority shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS sporting director Sir Dave Brailsford eventually decided to stick with Ten Hag.
However, in an interview with Dutch outlet AD Sportwereld, the manager has admitted the process of confirming his extension had been a rocky one, at times.
The 54-year-old had been on holiday in Ibiza with his family when he was informed by the club that he would be keeping his job.
“Communication broke down [with INEOS],” he said. “But I was just celebrating holidays with my loved ones, and I let things happen. I have no influence on that.
“Of course that is a strange state of affairs. But it’s not like I panicked. It’s a decision that was out of my hands. I just waited it out. At that moment you just think in two scenarios: either we continue or not. It’s that simple and I’m level-headed enough to look at it that way.
“They didn’t say, ‘We still want to continue’, but: ‘We want to continue’. The argument they gave was in short: we have looked at everything and compared everything, but we think we already have the best manager in house.
“Then I said, ‘Then we have to discuss a number of things about how we will interact with each other and work together’. We had a good, honest, but also confrontational conversation about this. As it should be at the top.
“I gave my vision of the season, on the situation at United and I indicated which path we should take in my opinion. You have to be very honest with each other about that. And then it’s about: do you come together or not? I also told them, ‘If you think this is not the way, then we should just part ways’.”
While Ten Hag remains at the helm of the club, things are likely to look very different on and off the pitch for United next season.
With former Man City executive Omar Barrada having become the new CEO, Dan Ashworth taking over as sporting director and Jason Wilcox becoming the new technical director, the club’s operations could be set for an overhaul.
Meanwhile, the club have also made a number of signings including former Bologna stirker Joshua Zirkzee and Lille star Leny Yoro.
News Summary:
- Erik ten Hag reveals Ibiza meeting with INEOS that sealed his Manchester United future: ‘We had to discuss how to move forward’
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