(Image: Getty Images)

Voormalig Manchester United-coach Benni McCarthy heeft beweerd dat ex-Reds-baas Erik ten Hag van plan was om 10 jaar lang de manager van de club te zijn.T

en Hag arrived at Old Trafford in the summer of 2022 after a successful spell at Dutch Ere divisive giants Ajax. The Dutchman’s bold, possession football style as Ajax head coach saw him win three league titles, two Dutch Cups, and reach the Champions League semi-finals in 2019.

The former Bayern Munich youth-team coach went on to enjoy a relatively successful first season at M16, winning the 2023 Carabao Cup, United’s first trophy since 2017, and finishing third in the Premier League. The Reds also reached the FA Cup final, losing to Manchester City, and recorded a notable win over Barcelona in the Europa League.

But results declined in Ten Hag’s second season. Although they won the FA Cup, United finished eighth in the top-flight table, their lowest-ever Premier League finish.

Despite a poor 2023/24 campaign, the club’s hierarchy handed Ten Hag a new contract, but results remained poor, and he was sacked in October. Now, McCarthy, who worked as a coach at the Reds under Ten Hag before leaving last summer, has opened up on the Dutchman’s long-term plan at United before he was fired.

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“I was given an incredible opportunity to work with one of the biggest and best clubs in the world under the guidance of Erik ten Hag,” McCarthy told BBC Sport Africa.

Benni McCarthy left his role as a Manchester United coach in the summer(Image: Getty Images)

“I learned utmost professionalism because the manager I worked under was not just a disciplinarian, but he was the best and one of the most unbelievable professionals I’ve ever seen in the game. Extremely hard-working, very dedicated, very passionate, he planned on being the Manchester United coach for the next 10 years. That was his vision.”

Ten Hag’s replacement, Ruben Amor I’m, has also struggled in the Old Trafford hot seat. The former Sporting CP boss has previously enjoyed success in Portugal but is yet to transfer any of that to the 20-time former English champions.

When asked what he believes the problems at United are, McCarthy admitted: “Honest to god, I don’t know what the issue is. It is just such a huge football club and the problems just seem to go on and on – and I don’t know how they’re going to resolve it.

“I’ve always been a fan – I love the club. It’s sad, and I just hope that the management, and the especially the coach, [Amor I’m], can rally the players, because they are very good players.”