Ex-Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag is yet to make his next move but former admirers AS Roma are once again on the lookout for a new manager
United gave Ten Hag the boot at the end of October following a woeful start to the season. His replacement, Ruben Amorim, touched down in Manchester on Monday after a deal was struck between the Premier League giants and his previous club Sporting Lisbon.
The Red Devils snapped up Ten Hag in 2022 after his stellar stint with Ajax, but Roma had their eyes on him even before that. They tried to lure him in 2019, but ended up settling for Paulo Fonseca, and later roped in ex-United boss Jose Mourinho when Fonseca exited in 2021.
Mourinho’s reign came to an abrupt end in early 2024, and since then, the Giallorossi have gone through two managers. Although there’s no fresh buzz about a comeback for the Dutchman, Roma’s interest back in 2019 seemed pretty serious.
At that time, Ten Hag was a hot commodity after nearly guiding Ajax to the Champions League final. Roma had just split with Claudio Ranieri who had come on board on a temporary basis midway through the prior season, and they saw the Dutchman as their top choice, reports the Mirror.
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However, according to De Telegraaf’s reports from that period, it was a non-starter. Ajax, who were reportedly annoyed at Roma’s conduct during talks over their star player Hakim Ziyech the previous summer, blocked the Italian side from approaching their manager.
Ziyech shone brightly during Ajax’s epic Champions League journey, which saw them topple giants Real Madrid and Juventus. He was all set to sign with Roma until they abruptly pulled the plug.
The Moroccan ace eventually made his way to Chelsea in 2020, racking up over 100 appearances for the Blues over three seasons.
Roma’s current campaign has been a bit of a rollercoaster despite splashing the cash on Artem Dovbyk and Matias Soule. Daniele De Rossi threw in the towel come September, and his replacement Ivan Juric didn’t last two months at the helm.
With just one win from four Europa League clashes and languishing in Serie A’s lower echelons, Sunday’s home loss to Bologna marked their fourth defeat in five under Juric, who got the boot that very day.
The club expressed gratitude in a statement: “We would like to thank Ivan Juric for his hard work these past weeks,” it read. “He handled a difficult environment with the utmost professionalism, and for that we are grateful.
“We wish him all the best in his future endeavors. The search for a new head coach has already begun and we expect an announcement in the coming days.”