Erik ten Hag transformed one Manchester United star’s confidence after the message he dropped on the player during his time at Dutch side Ajax.
The 54-year-old Dutchman made a name for himself at Ajax and enjoyed incredible success with the Dutch outfit before his move to Old Trafford in 2022.
Erik ten Hag led Ajax to three Eredivisie titles and two Dutch Cups, including engineering a run to the Champions League semi-finals in the 2018-19 season.
The former Ajax boss has since seen success during his time at Old Trafford, with Ten Hag lifting a League Cup and an FA Cup with Manchester United.
During his time at Old Trafford, United manager Ten Hag has crossed paths with several of his former Ajax players.
Ten Hag has brought the likes of Andre Onana, Antony and Lisandro Martinez to the Premier League club, having managed all three players at Ajax.
The Dutchman also reunited with Donny van de Beek before the former United midfielder was sold to La Liga club Girona this summer.
New United summer signings Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui have since become the latest former Ajax players to link up with Ten Hag again.
Ten Hag’s message at Ajax
Speaking to Manchester United’s official website, Matthijs de Ligt has revealed the impact that Erik ten Hag had on him during his time at Ajax.
United completed a stunning double swoop for De Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui from Bayern Munich, with the deal costing the Red Devils nearly £60m.
De Ligt received his United debut last week after he came off the bench in the 1-0 Premier League win over Fulham at Old Trafford.
The former Bayern Munich star started his playing career at Ajax and rose through the ranks of the youth academy and established himself as a key first-team player.
De Ligt was only 18 years old when Ten Hag handed him the captain’s armband, with the United star opening up on the impact that one moment had on him.
“He [Erik ten Hag] has played a big part [in my development], to be fair,” he said.
“He was the first trainer who made me captain. I was 18 years old, and he just gave me so much confidence.
“He told me right from the start: ‘You are an example for the team, and I want you to be captain.’
“I would never have expected that at that moment, but it was such a great honour. Just the confidence he gave me at that time, at that age, was really special.”
De Ligt on signing for Man Utd
Following his time under Ten Hag at Ajax, De Ligt went on to play for Serie A side Juventus before he signed for Bayern Munich in 2022.
The 25-year-old United centre-back spoke openly about his move to Old Trafford and his deep admiration for the Premier League club’s history.
“There’s a lot of history in this club,” he said.
“I mean, I grew up with the team of United of Cristiano Ronaldo, [Nemanja] Vidic, [Rio] Ferdinand, Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes, Edwin van der Sar, the Dutchman.
“There is so much history in this club and I’m now speaking about 20 years ago. But even more [further back] when they won the Champions League, the treble… it’s such a big, historic club.
“You can feel this already, it’s in the air here. I haven’t seen the stadium yet, but I think if I go there, it’s also like you can breathe the history. It’s just amazing that I can be a part now of this club.”
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