Manchester United have confirmed that talks will begin with manager Erik ten Hag over a new contract, despite the Dutchman still having a year left on his current deal, with a possible 12-month extension. However, negotiations are likely to be complicated by United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s insistence that Ten Hag’s role be changed from manager to head coach, with player recruitment being handled by the football operations team rather than Ten Hag. This potential change in Ten Hag’s responsibilities has the potential to be a major sticking point in the contract talks, as the Dutchman has previously stated that control of transfers is a condition for him. Following a recent end-of-season review by Ratcliffe’s football leaders team, a major focus was placed on player recruitment, with Ten Hag having overseen significant spending in the last two years.

The new United hierarchy is determined to take control of recruitment going forward, leading to potential tensions with Ten Hag, who has expressed frustration at the lack of public backing from Ratcliffe when he first assumed control of football operations. In his defense to stay in charge, Ten Hag presented United’s hierarchy with statistics highlighting the extent of the injury crisis last season, which led to numerous defensive combinations being used. Despite the talks about a new contract, Ten Hag could potentially push back against the proposed change in his role, which could derail the negotiations.