I followed Erik ten Hag to Manchester United - this is why I left

Mitchell van der Gaag has reiterated that he decided to leave Manchester United at the end of last season in order to pursue his own managerial journey.

Van der Gaag arrived at Old Trafford alongside close friend Erik ten Hag when he was appointed two years ago, having also worked as his assistant coach at Ajax. Although his last two roles have been as an assistant, Van der Gaag is a reputable manager in his own right, with six senior managerial roles under his belt already.

United's coaching refresh in the summer was the ideal chance for the 53-year-old to leave Old Trafford, and he has explained his decision to leave the club.

“What happened? Well, not so much. My ambition is to become a head coach again, after first being an assistant at Ajax and then at Manchester United. It’s great to be an assistant, but at a certain point you also have to follow your ambitions again," he told NOS.

“Those were two great years, because you really work at the top. And I’m not just talking about United, but also the entire competition. Normally you see the Premier League on television, now I was in the middle of it. If you look at the tactical variation, to use a coaching term: it is top in the Premier League. It was enjoyable.”

It means Van der Gaag only worked briefly with Ineos before he decided to leave the club after their FA Cup win over Man City, but he has seen enough to believe Ten Hag can be a success under their regime.

He added: “You see with Ineos that they are in line with Ten Hag and dare to look ahead. But in that whole process you do need results. In that respect, it is nice that you enjoyed this last weekend Brentford wins. If it was an easy job, everyone could be there. Since the departure of Alex Ferguson, there have been ups and downs. The great thing about Erik is: he always keeps looking ahead and moving forward. You can’t control the rest.”