Manchester United icon Jaap Stam has warned Ajax manager Erik ten Hag that he will need to ‘compete for prizes every year’ if he is to be fully supported at the club.
The Ajax boss is currently the odds-on favourite to replace Ralf Rangnick at the club when he steps down from his caretaker role at the end of the season.
The German is set to move away from the dugout and into a consultancy role at Old Trafford after replacing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer back in November.
Work is already underway to find the next permanent Manchester United manager, with club chiefs reportedly holding talks with potential candidates over the last few months.
Ten Hag is one of them, having established himself as one of the up and coming managers in Europe with Ajax over the last few years.
The Dutch boss has Ajax challenging both domestically and in the Champions League with an exciting brand of football, despite the club’s big stars being sold pretty much every summer.
Many believe he would be the ideal man for the rebuild required at Manchester United, but Stam has sent him a stark warning.
“The most frustrating thing for me is that you don’t see a clear way of playing football at Manchester United,” he told Voetbal Primeur.
“If you look at the managers they have had, I wonder if they were given the time or could get it across to the players who were there at the time.
“The question is also whether the players could translate what a coach wanted; that’s not always the case.
“In the beginning, people still go along and say that you get time, but you don’t get that at a top club. The owners may fully support you and give you the time and space to build up something; the outside world thinks differently.
“As soon as things don’t go your way and you don’t get any points, the grumbling often starts. A club like Manchester United has to compete for prizes every year, but they don’t settle for a tenth place in the first year so that you can finish in the top four the year after.
“That is too romantic. That is why it is so important for Erik to gather the right people around him that can help him in that respect.
“Not only on a football level but also on a personal level. How do you present yourself and express yourself?”
