Former Erik ten Hag assistant reveals what 'disappointed' him about Manchester United spell

Former Erik ten Hag assistant reveals what 'disappointed' him about Manchester United spell

Mitchell van der Gaag spent two years at Man United, working alongside former manager Erik ten Hag.

Mitchell van der Gaag spent two years at Old Trafford. (Image: Gerrit van Cologne/ANP via Getty Images.)

Former assistant manager Mitchell van der Gaag has admitted he has nothing but fond memories of his time at Manchester United - but says one particular element of his time at the club frustrated him.

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Van der Gaag joined United in May 2022, being installed as one of Erik ten Hag's assistants alongside Steve McClaren. The Dutchman had previously worked with Ten Hag at Ajax.

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The 53-year-old, who was installed as FC Zürich's head coach in May, left Old Trafford in July 2024 after United made the decision to shake up Ten Hag's coaching team. Former striker Ruud van Nistelrooy and Rene Hake were installed as Ten Hag's new assistants.

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Previously admitting he had ambitions of becoming a head coach himself when addressing his United exit, Van der Gaag has now opened up on his time at Old Trafford, describing his two years at the club as "wonderful".

Despite that, he has admitted he was disappointed by the club's failure to make their mark in the Europa League. United exited the competition at the quarter-final stage in the 2022/23 season, losing 5-2 on aggregate to Sevilla

"I look back on my time at Manchester United positively," Van der Gaag told GiveMeSport. "I think it was two wonderful years. They were very positive and I learned a lot.

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"The first year was very positive because we finished in third place, won the Carabao Cup and went to the FA Cup final. I think the only disappointment, in my opinion, was that we could have been better in the Europa League. But I think the first year was very positive, so everyone expected that we could improve in the second season.

"That was a very strange season. We were not good enough in the Premier League or Champions League. There were very strange results as well because there were games we were winning comfortably and then drawing or losing.

"But, in the end, we won the FA Cup. It puts everything in a positive way, so that was important.

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"They were two years when I learned a lot, especially about the way the Premier League functions, the way football is played and the tactical variations. It was something that I really enjoyed."

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