Fabrizio Romano has confirmed Manchester United are looking to bring in Mitchell van der Gaag from Ajax.
Van der Gaag is the current Ajax assistant manager, alongside Erik ten Hag, a position he has held since the beginning of the season. The Dutch coach has spent some time in management before moving to the Ajax reserve team in 2019.
Romano has now confirmed that Manchester United are getting closer to agreeing a deal to bring him to the club to work alongside Ten Hag, as seen in the tweet below.
Manchester United are working on the details of the contract to bring Mitchell van der Gaag at the club from Ajax, as part of Erik ten Hag coaching staff. ??? #MUFC
Van der Gaag has been considered an important addition for months – agreement getting closer. Talks ongoing.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) May 10, 2022
Van der Gaag has spent some time in the UK, spending a few years at Motherwell as a player in the nineties. Since then, he’s spent some time in Holland, Saudi Arabia, Portugal, and Cyprus, so he’s certainly not afraid to move countries to continue his progression.
Behind every top manager is a top assistant manager, and they can often be just as important as the head coach. We’ve seen with the likes of Pep Lijnders at Liverpool and Davide Ancelotti at Real Madrid, they spend just as much time barking orders at their team as the manager does.
If a manager as well respected as Ten Hag is happy to bring his assistant manager with him, then Manchester United should have no doubts about offering him a role at the club.
If Ten Hag wants him then United should move heaven and earth to make it happen. A good partnership in the dugout can lead to success on the pitch.