Ten Hag replied: “Yes but I think still, don’t underestimate the role of Begiristain.” There was an interjection: “That club is built for Pep Guardiola.” “About City, (Txiki) Begiristain does a very…”

“I don’t know if that is true,” Ten Hag said. It was put to him that the most important person at a club should be the manager, just like Sir Alex Ferguson before him at United and Pep Guardiola now at neighbours Manchester City. Wiping away the debt would allow for more flexibility but the way for United to really raise additional money is via player sales, and that perhaps was at the crux of how Ten Hag answered a question about what is happening across town.

This would be the case even under Qatari owners.

Club staff have been told it is business as usual, but the prospect of a new direction suddenly coming in means there is a hesitancy to go full throttle.Īs it stands, United are looking at a budget of about £100million ($125.6m), due to financial fair play rules. Whether Ten Hag was keeping his cards close to his chest for negotiation purposes or whether he genuinely is in the dark about how much he will be given to spend, the truth is there is much uncertainty around United because of the sales process. Everyone knows high-level players cost a lot of money.” But in football you need funds to construct squads because, at the end of the day, the level of your players decides if you are successful or not. The club has to compete for the highest in the world - Champions League, Premier League. “The only thing I know is that Man United is one of the biggest clubs in the world from a fanbase perspective. “No, I don’t have influence on that… also I don’t know,” Ten Hag said, when asked whether he had received assurances he would have funds to shape the squad to his desires, whoever owns the club by then. But we want to knock them all out, and there is some way to go.”Īdding muscle and honing guile will help United land the power punches on those Tuesday and Wednesday nights next autumn, but how much can Ten Hag do when the market opens, and what is dictated by the takeover process? This was a topic the United manager seemed unable to provide total clarity on. “We have already shown the improvement that we can beat the best teams in the world. In your windows, you strengthen your squad, or make investments so you get more balance. “But of course I, we, see this as a project. “Yeah, I think so,” he said, in a manner more confident than it looks written down.

The Way We Work by David Macaulay