Newcastle United

Newcastle United

Premier League • England

Newcastle savagely put down in top manager hunt; Man Utd job touted instead

Massimiliano Allegri, Erik Ten Hag

A journalist exclaimed “Why in God’s name would he go to Newcastle” when referencing an in-demand manager, instead insisting he should wait to scoop the gig at Manchester United.

Newcastle are on the hunt for an elite level manager to lead the early years of their new project. The club are expected to splash the cash in the winter window, but precisely who will be tasked with managing the chequebook is currently unknown.

Newcastle must appoint both a sporting director and manager as their first and second acts. A recent report indicated Ajax’s Marc Overmars was on their radar for the former role.

The ex-Arsenal winger has delivered the goods in Amsterdam and had even been linked with joining Edu at the Emirates.

If installed at Newcastle, Overmars is understood to want Ajax boss Erik ten Hag to follow.

The 51-year-old has earned rave reviews for the work he has done with the Dutch giant. After years of labouring in Europe’s elite competition, Ten Hag oversaw a run to the Champions League semi-final in 2018/19.

However, Dutch journalist Arno Vermeulen has delivered a savage put down to Newcastle’s hopes of landing Ten Hag.

Via Sport Witness, Vermeulen quipped: “Why in God’s name would he go to Newcastle, I wonder? He’s really smart.

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“He started working at Ajax in the top of the Netherlands. Together with others, he may well have made Ajax the European giant.”

Vermeulen then suggested Ten Hag would be more than capable of making a bigger leap to a genuine English powerhouse.

Manchester City and Manchester United were both namechecked, and given recent results, the manager’s job at United could soon be up for grabs.

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer 2021

“I can imagine that he will make another jump, but you must forget the money,” continued Vermeulen. “It’s about the challenge.

“Then wouldn’t it be much smarter to wait for clubs like Manchester City or Manchester United? Clubs that are established. If you win trophies [with Ajax] for a few years, that is very valuable.”


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Overmars interested as Newcastle make contact

Meanwhile, Newcastle United are reportedly in talks with their potential new director of football Marc Overmars.

To fill that role, the Mirror reveal that they have opened talks – via intermediaries – with Overmars, who currently occupies such a role at Ajax.

The former Arsenal player has helped Ajax nourish young talent and also spot shrewd deals in the transfer market.

He is under contract with the Dutch club for another three years, but will be allowed to leave for one of Europe’s top leagues after three months’ notice due to a clause in his contract. And the Mirror claim he would be interested in the Newcastle role should they pay his current club the required compensation.

Personal terms would also not be an obstacle. In fact, Newcastle would be willing to quadruple the £620,000 annual salary he earns at Ajax.

And citing Dutch sources, the Mirror claim he would want Ajax boss Ten Hag to follow him to Tyneside if appointed.

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