Ruud van Nistelrooy will not be happy with his new role at Manchester United, claims one of his former team-mates.
The former Dutch forward joined Rene Hake as one of two new assistant coaches at Old Trafford ahead of the new campaign, with van Nistelrooy having previously enjoyed success in Holland with PSV Eindhoven.
But with the future of Ten Hag once uncertain, questions have been raised about whether the 48-year-old has simply been brought in to provide an instant back up by INEOS, should their plans for the former Ajax boss soon be scuppered.
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"It’s obvious to everyone what Manchester United would do if they sacked Erik ten Hag and that’s to appoint Ruud van Nistelrooy," Dwight Yorke told BoyleSports recently.
"It’s really not an ideal situation, if you are the manager. I know Ruud personally and he’s a great guy, he's got his own ambitions, he's obviously set that out in the past.
"I can only speak for myself, I don't really like it when you're going into a job knowing that if things don't go well enough for your boss then you can step into that position. Something is not quite right about that, in my opinion, because although he's very professional, I'm sure he'll go in there and do all his due diligence for the manager and work under the manager’s regime - but I don’t like the bigger picture.
"I’ve got to be honest. I'd rather sit on the side and be clear in my intention of being a full-time manager. I just think the environment is not quite right, even though you're pushing for the team to win and I'm sure that's the case with Ruud, but if that doesn't go well, then there is only one person who's going to take the blame and be sacked."
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