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Manchester United are reportedly considering turning to Ruud van Nistelrooy should they wield the axe on Erik ten Hag. The iconic former Red Devils striker returned to the club in the summer as an assistant to Ten Hag.
TalkSPORT's Alex Crook reports that United would consider putting Van Nistelrooy in interim charge should they sack Ten Hag. The Dutch coach is coming under increasing pressure amid his side's disappointing start to the season.
In the summer, Ten Hag was handed a new one-year contract extension by INEOS but failed to oversee a turnaround at Old Trafford. His men have lost three and won two of their opening six league games, sitting 12th in the table.
Manchester United were beaten 3-0 at home by Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday (September 29) after going down to 10 men following Bruno Fernandes' sending-off. It was the second time they had been beaten by this scoreline, suffering the same fate against Liverpool.
Van Nistelrooy replaced Mitchell van der Gaag in Ten Hag's backroom staff in the summer. He signed a two-year deal with the club, where he spent four trophy-laden seasons as a player.
Ten Hag looks likely to at least be in charge for United's games against FC Porto (October 3) in the UEFA Europa League and Aston Villa (October 6) in the league. The club will then have an international break to make a decision over his future.
Martin Keown questions whether Ruud Van Nistelrooy is 'waiting to take over' from Ten Hag at Manchester United
Van Nistelrooy was a visible figure alongside Ten Hag on the touchline during Manchester United's start of the season. The iconic Dutchman's presence has been less obvious as of late, and he spent much of the loss to Spurs watching on from the bench.
Arsenal legend Martin Keown suggested the former PSV Eindhoven manager may be waiting to take over from Ten Hag. He told the aforementioned source:
"I'm looking at Van Nistelrooy. Is he giving everything to this manager? This manager looks very lonely on the sideline. Is Van Nistelrooy waiting to take over? Because it looks as if there's going to be change taking place there. It doesn't look like the players are committed, it doesn't look like the staff are particularly committed. It's a lone man in the dugout."
There has been a feeling among the Manchester United fanbase that Van Nistelrooy's return was part of a contingency plan. Ten Hag's contract extension coincided with their former striker joining his overhauled backroom team.
Van Nistelrooy impressed in charge of PSV as first-team coach, overseeing 34 wins in 50 games. He led the Eredivisie side to the KNVB Cup before departing in May 2023.
