PL News: Who is Erik ten Hag
Let's explore the new manager of Manchester United
Early days in management
In 2012, Ten Hag was appointed as manager of Go Ahead Eagles in the Eerste Divisie by Marc Overmars, who was a shareholder of the club. During his only season at Go Ahead Eagles, he managed the team to its first promotion in 17 years.
He coached Bayern Munich II from 6 June 2013 until 2015 when he was replaced by Heiko Vogel. His final match as Bayern Munich II head coach was in May 2015. Perhaps interestingly, he was at Bayer the same time as the current Manchester City manager.
Ten Hag then became the Sporting Director and head coach of FC Utrecht in the summer of 2015, where he led the club to fifth place during his first season. In the 2016–17 season, he improved FC Utrecht's final position to fourth, booking a place in the Europa League qualifiers.
Moving to AFC Ajax
On 21 December 2017, he was appointed as the head coach of AFC Ajax after the club dismissed Marcel Keizer. In 2019, he led his Ajax team to the semi-finals of the 2018–19 UEFA Champions League for the first time since 1997, by winning against holding champions Real Madrid 4–1 in the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium at the round of 16 stage, and also beating Juventus away 1–2 having drawn the first leg 1–1 at home in the quarterfinals.
In the first leg of the semi-final, he led his team to take a 1–0 lead against Tottenham Hotspur in the recently completed Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. However in the second leg, a second-half hat-trick by Lucas Moura for Tottenham Hotspur, with the last goal being scored in the 96th minute to make it 3–2 (3–3 on aggregate) to win on away goals, thus ending Ajax's hopes of playing in the final for the first time since the 1990s.
Interviewed Erik ten Hag a few times on that amazing 2019 Champions League run. Top man, hugely popular. Always wondered why no one came in for him sooner. Proved what he could do with Ajax’s dynamic young squad, but he inherits a mess at Manchester United. Big big job! 🙌#MUFC pic.twitter.com/FwVFmHwY0W
— Reshmin Chowdhury (@ReshminTV) April 21, 2022
He won his first managerial trophy with Ajax on 5 May 2019, the 2018–19 KNVB Cup, beating Willem II in the final. Only 10 days after winning the cup, Ajax then won the Eredivisie after a 4-1 away victory over De Graafschap. This brought the double back to the club.
On 18 April 2021, Ten Hag guided Ajax to their record-extending 20th KNVB Cup with a 2–1 win over Vitesse in the final. Two weeks later, he extended his contract with Ajax through to the end of the 2022–23 season.
On 16 January 2022, Ten Hag became the fastest manager in league history to reach 100 wins with Ajax, achieving the feat in 128 matches, when his side beat FC Utrecht 3–0 away on matchday 19.
This interesting video from BT Sport is worth a watch. Many would argue that Manchester United have just appointed the best man for the job.
In his final days at Ajax. He will certainly be hoping to recover from that defeat to PSV. Erik ten Hag will certainly want to end a glorious reign at the club on a high. It would be a fitting end to a wonderful few years. The only regret will be that Champions League match against Spurs in 2019.
A new revolution at Manchester United
On 21 April 2022, Ten Hag was appointed as manager of Manchester United starting 1 July until June 2025 with the option of extending for a further year. One Manchester United fan told us: "It's a great appointment."
𝐄𝐫𝐢𝐤 𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐇𝐚𝐠 🤝 #MUFC
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) April 21, 2022
🎨 @HazDoesWhatever#WelcomeErik || #UnitedFanArt pic.twitter.com/F9jLbgUxhr
