Man Utd announce ex-Ajax coach Mitchell van der Gaag and Steve McClaren as Erik ten Hag’s assistants for next season
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MANCHESTER UNITED have officially confirmed Mitchell van der Gaag and Steve McClaren as assistants to Erik ten Hag.
Both Van der Gaag, 50, and McClaren, 61, were in the stands at Selhurst Park yesterday to watch United lose 1-0 to Crystal Palace.
They were spotted alongside Ten Hag in south London.
And this morning they have been officially confirmed as part of the Dutchman's backroom team at Old Trafford.
Van der Gaag's appointment is subject to FA approval and a UK visa.
Ten Hag knows both men well, having had Van der Gaag as his No2 at Ajax last year and also previously working with McClaren at FC Twente.
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The pair have been linked with backroom roles at Old Trafford ever since Ten Hag was confirmed as the club's next permanent boss last month.
Work between the trio had begun even before the announcement as they were spotted deep in conversation at Selhurst Park.
Van der Gaag made the step up from coach of Ajax's reserves to first-team assistant in the season just gone, helping the Dutch outfit clinch the Eredivisie title for a third season in a row.
McClaren meanwhile had Ten Hag as his No2 back when they won the Dutch title with Twente in 2010.
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United's of the pair quotes McClaren as saying recently: "I thought I worked hard until I met Erik.
"His great strength lies not just in his attention to detail and organisation.
"He has a clear philosophy of how he wants to play football; the environment he wants to create."
Former England manager McClaren has already spent time at Old Trafford as assistant to Sir Alex Ferguson.
After joining in 1999 he left the club two years later to become a head coach himself, taking charge of Middlesborough before moving on to the Three Lions and later Twente, where he met Ten Hag.
Elsewhere McClaren has had spells with Wolfsburg in Germany, plus Nottingham Forest, Derby County, Newcastle and QPR.
Van der Gaag meanwhile has spent time coaching in Portugal, as well as his native Holland.