Evra compares Ten Hag arrival to Man Utd appointing a ‘chef’ as new manager
Former France international Patrice Evra says even if Man Utd “brought a chef in” to manage the club they would have his “full support”.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was sacked last November with the club appointing Ralf Rangnick as the new interim boss until the end of the season.
However, the German’s appointment did not work out as the players put in arguably worse performances on their way to finishing sixth in the Premier League table, 13 points behind fourth-placed Tottenham and 35 points adrift of champions Man City.
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Man Utd have now brought in Erik ten Hag, who has pedigree from his time as Ajax boss, but he is unproven in the Premier League.
And Evra was frustrated that the club didn’t attempt to bring Antonio Conte to the club before Tottenham snapped him up earlier in the season.
Evra told the Daily Mirror: “It hurts my heart. Because I think Conte, Klopp, Guardiola – all those managers are the best in the world right now and we could have had him at Manchester United.
“But some people at the club, they said: ‘It’s not our style, it’s not what we’re looking for.’
“So let’s see, now we have Erik ten Hag. Let’s see what he’s going to do. He has my support. But then, even if you brought a chef in, as the manager of Man United, he’d have my full support.”
Conte has done well at Tottenham since replacing Nuno Espirito Santo early last campaign and Evra says it is a “massive disappointment” that Man Utd didn’t sign him up as their new manager.
Evra added: “It’s is a massive disappointment because he could have done something at Man Utd. And you can see with Tottenham, he helped them to qualify for the Champions League spot.
“They have the same players, so that’s why this manager is a genius. When I arrived at Juventus, every player told me: ‘Patrice, this guy is a genius.
“He’s addicted, he’s so passionate about football. So you’re going to run really hard. He’s going to make you sweat. But if you look at the Tottenham fans, they are so happy because when they see the players now, win or they lose, they give everything. That’s the mentality of Antonio Conte.
“That’s why I say it hurts. Not because it’s Tottenham – I love every team – but it’s just because Conte could have done something.”