Ruud van Nistelrooy returned to Manchester in the summer
Ruud van Nistelrooy returned to Manchester in the summer
Ruud van Nistelrooy has revealed the hurt he felt after being released by Manchester United.
As the new Leicester City boss assumed office, the one-time interim was asked about the manner of his exit from Old Trafford. The Dutch legend had hoped that in-coming chief Ruben Amorim would find a spot for him as part of the club’s backroom team.
Van Nistelrooy said: “The moment I took over the interim job, I said: ‘I’m here to help United and to stay to help United,’ and I meant it. So I was disappointed, yeah, very much so, and it hurt I had to leave.
“The only job I would take as an assistant was at United because of the bond that I have with the people in the club and the fans. But in the end, I got my head around it because I also understand the new manager.
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“I’ve been in football long enough and managed myself. You can think of a situation with me being there…I understand. I spoke to Ruben about it, and it was fair enough. I was grateful for the conversation.
“He spoke to me man to man, person to person, manager to manager, and that helped a lot to move on and straightaway get into talks with new possibilities, which, of course, lifted my spirits.”
However the 48-year-old did admit that being at Old Trafford - even for four games - had opened the door to a lot of job offers. He added: “What happened after that - the amount of interest that was there for me and the options that came along - I was astonished.
The Dutchman was shown the door shortly after Erik ten Hag was sacked
The Dutchman was shown the door shortly after Erik ten Hag was sacked
“I thought: ‘It’s four games.’ I had a full season with PSV, I won the cup and Charity Shield did well with young PSV. I’d been coaching with the national team and it never got this reaction from the football world. It provoked these reactions. I was only happy with that.
“I was able to get into conversations that were good for me - and that brought me to Leicester."
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