Mueez Ajao
– Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has said Ajax manager Erik ten Hag could be a strong candidate to succeed him.
– Ten Hag is also among a handful of names linked to the top job at Manchester United as interim manager Ralf Rangnick’s tenure is set to conclude at the end of the campaign.
– Guardiola joined City in 2016 and has a contract until the end of next season. He said in January he might make a decision on his future this summer.
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– “Could Erik ten Hag be here at City? Definitely. I think he could be the one,” Guardiola said. “For the way he approaches the game, definitely.”
– Guardiola worked with Ten Hag at Bundesliga club Bayern Munich for two seasons when Ten Hag was in charge of the second team.
– The 52-year-old was appointed by Ajax during the 2017-18 campaign and led them to the Dutch league title in 2019 and 2021, as well as the Champions League semi-finals in 2019.
– “For his qualities, just take a look at his Ajax team in the last years,” Guardiola said.
– “It is a joy to watch and in many games, not just the year they got to the Champions League semi-final, but with little details they would have reached that final.”
– Ten Hag told German TV channel Sport1 he could not rule out leaving Ajax this summer.
– “My focus is currently only on Ajax,” Ten Hag said. “But in football, you never know.”
– Asked to confirm if he had spoken to United, he said: “Everyone knows each other in the industry. There are always talks with representatives from other clubs — that’s normal.”
