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Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has named Johan Cruyff, Rinus Michels, Kees Rijvers, and Louis van Gaal as his four coaching inspirations.
Ten Hag was a centre-back during his playing days and spent three separate spells at FC Twente - the club where he started and ended his senior playing career.
During that time, Ten Hag admittedly had the opportunity to learn about and study Rijvers, who managed Twente, PSV Eindhoven, and the Netherlands among other teams during his career.
When asked to name his coaching inspirations, Ten Hag told Manchester United's official website:
"The best one, the famous one, was the manager of FC Twente, Kees Rijvers. Later on, he was the manager of PSV [Eindhoven], where he won the UEFA Cup later on [1977/78], and [was] also manager of the Dutch side, the Netherlands."
Ten Hag said that the two years he played under Rijvers as a coach played a big role in the formation of his footballing philosophy. He added:
"Previously, he was a very good player and I also had the luck, for two years, that he was my coach at FC Twente and I learnt a lot about him, about organisation in football, about his philosophy, about playing from the back, attacking football and about team spirit."
The former Ajax manager then concluded the answer by adding Van Gaal, Michels, and Cruyff to the list. Ten Hag said:
"But also other managers inspired me, definitely, like Louis van Gaal, Rinus Michels and Johan Cruyff, they are the big inspirers."
The Netherlands has produced some of the greatest pioneers in the world of football, none more so than Cruyff. The late great Dutchman managed Ajax and Barcelona with distinction, winning the European Cup with the latter in 1992.
Van Gaal, meanwhile, managed the Netherlands at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. However, the former Manchester United manager quit his role as the Oranje's head coach after the event in Qatar.
Michels, meanwhile, is widely regarded as the pioneer of 'total football', which he mastered at Ajax, Barcelona, and the Netherlands in 1970s.
Erik ten Hag is exceeding expectations at Manchester United
No matter who became Manchester United's manager last summer, immediate silverware was a rather unlikely proposition.
Years of managerial changes and, as Ten Hag recently put it, 'average signings' saw United fall behind their rivals in domestic and European football. They missed out on UEFA Champions League football this season.
Hence, a return to the competition next term will be seen as a step in the right direction. As of now, this is a realistic possibility under Ten Hag.
They are currently fourth in the table, with 35 points from 17 games. They have a difficult league fixture next, facing off against city rivals Manchester City at home on January 14.
