Former Manchester United coach Ewan Sharp, who will be part of the Canada staff at the 2026 World Cup, speaks exclusively to the Manchester Evening News.
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Ewan Sharp, left, chats to Ralf Rangnick during their time together at Manchester United
Ewan Sharp, left, chats to Ralf Rangnick during their time together at Manchester United
This time next year Ewan Sharp will be at the centre of an historic World Cup.
He could even come up against a few familiar faces from his Manchester United days - perhaps a meeting with Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes, or facing off against his mentor Ralf Rangnick, now in charge of Austria.
Sharp spent a year at Old Trafford, working alongside Rangnick, and is now part of the coaching staff at Canada, who are co-hosts for next summer's World Cup.
Right now the Canadians are involved in the Gold Cup and face Curaçao in their second group game tonight having eased past Honduras 6-0 in their opener.
Canada, managed by former Leeds United boss Jesse Marsch, are one of the favourites for the tournament alongside their co-hosts USA and Mexico. Sharp, 32, will hope this summer brings success and that the formula can be repeated on the world stage in 12 months' time.
"The atmosphere is on another level," admits Sharp, chatting to the Manchester Evening News ahead of the tournament. "The players themselves are good people and I have never worked with a team which is so close.
"The Gold Cup in a lot of ways replicates the World Cup and we want to use that as a learning and an experience. I think in the last year we have learned a lot about our players and our group and the squad depth is improving."
Sharp's role within the staff set-up is a hybrid of analysis and on-pitch coaching. It's one he relishes with his background in video analysis lending itself to an analytical role while his desire to one day be a manager means he relishes the coaching aspect.
"Day to day I am involved in scouting our players, watching their matches, looking at players we should consider calling in, looking at our core guys," Sharp explains.
"As well as being responsible for the opposition match planning and prep and thinking about ways in which we can play against them.
Ewan Sharp alongside Jesse Marsch ahead of a Canada fixture against France
Ewan Sharp alongside Jesse Marsch ahead of a Canada fixture
"In camp, a lot of that prep work is done, so I am a bit more free to help with training planning and coaching and working with individual players."
Sharp's rise to the role started in the Red Bull organisation, where he first met Marsch and also Rangnick. It was the German who took Sharp to United.
It was one of many difficult periods in United's recent history with the club having axed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and, unsure of where to go next, turned to Rangnick and his team as an interim option.
An initial honeymoon period saw United beaten just twice in 17 games - albeit one was a penalty shoot out defeat to Middlesbrough in the FA Cup - but after a derby day thumping at Manchester City and a Champions League exit to Atletico Madrid and with qualification for next season's elite competition slipping away, the wheels came off. United won just three times in their final 14 matches. A deal to bring Erik ten Hag in for the following campaign was announced in April and Sharp admits it became a tough sell for the coaching staff.
"Things started off in a good way, I felt we had some progress," said the affable and conversational Sharp from his home in Florida. "As the season went on, when certain objectives were out of reach and we'd been knocked out of the Champions League by Atletico, once that was gone and it became more and more difficult to reach the top four, the environment and the feeling was one of disappointment.
"There was a bit of a slide and perhaps that same appetite for what we were bringing to the table disappeared a bit. When you are competing for something you are on the edge and every player is so ready for it, and as soon as that goes... you see it at end of seasons when teams slide a bit.
"We hit a bit of that and the fact that we weren't full-time staff, it was hard for us to put something on the table because it had already been announced that Ten Hag was coming in.
"We couldn't say 'if you do this, you can be a part of this, and we are building this'. We are now managing it until the next guy comes in and that becomes a challenge.
"Was it viewed unfairly? The expectations at Man United are as high as they can be, and rightly so. We knew that going into it, anything short of a really good winning record, and trying to push for the Champions League and to have a good run in the Champions League, that was the objective. We were disappointed we didn't achieve that but there were a lot of challenges going on."
Rangnick famously said United needed 'open heart surgery' in a quote that didn't sit well at the time but has perhaps become somewhat prophetic. United lifted two trophies under Ten Hag and reached the Europa League final last season, but the latest rebuild under Ruben Amorim is only just beginning.
For Sharp, the chapter at Old Trafford was a privilege and a learning curve. The chance to work with elite players at an elite club, even if it was a difficult situation from the get-go amid poor form, a club at a crossroads and fan perception or Rangnick and an interim coaching team.
"Arriving at Man United was a big responsibility but I kept telling myself that Ralf had brought me here for a reason," reflects Sharp.
"I might not know everything about the game but I now what Ralf wants. I don't have all the solutions but I can help Ralf communicate his message. The players were receptive to it and open to it.
"I am not trying to help Bruno take a free kick but I can help him understand what the manager is asking of him or I can sit with him and say things I saw from the game and have a discussion, and perhaps help them see that for us and how Ralf wants us to play, this is why we want to see it this way. Most of the time players want to be better and to help the team so they will fit in with what the manager wants.
"It was a very difficult situation that we went into. I am so grateful for the opportunity but it was a challenging environment to be in. Partly because of where the club was at in that moment, but also in the way in which we came in. We came in on the back of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who you could feel was loved by the people inside the club. Everyone loved him, from the staff in the canteen to everyone.
"We came in and are coming in for an interim. When Ralf talked about that open heart surgery, one of his greatest strengths is creating a continuity and a vision for a club. Ralf knows how to put people in positions to build a whole club so that at least it works to a vision. And for Ralf to do that he has to be given the reins. He was recognising what a lot of the problems were and a lot of the things that could be improved to get it back to where it should be."
Ralf Rangnick, interim manager of Manchester United looks on during the Premier League match between Everton and United at Goodison Park
Ewan Sharp, left, during his time at Manchester United
United are not yet there, three years on from Sharp's departure. The hope is that under Amorim the Reds can embark on a successful journey back to the top. Sharp himself has been on quite the journey in football to reach the top.
He left his native Scotland to go to America on a football scholarship at university and became interested in coaching. A friend introduced him to video analysis and Sharp dived into the analytical world and began doing analysis for the college he was attending to do his masters. An opportunity opened up in New York with the Red Bulls second team and it was there that Sharp met Rangnick.
"I have been lucky, lucky to meet the right people, for them to open doors for me," he adds, somewhat modestly. "But then I know when I step through that door I can add value and contribute. Each step, you get hungry for the next environment.
"It (my journey) is a bit unconventional and a bit different but I am inspired by others. Fabian Hurzeler at Brighton is an example, he didn't have a big playing career and is a similar age to me and is performing really well in the Premier League with a great club.
"I am ambitious, hungry and believe I have some value to bring to the table and I have always trusted and back myself, so I have never been afraid to give my opinion which is important, but always in the right way.
"For me (being a head coach) is an aim, I am ambitious and hungry and every time I take a step up I am thinking about what is next.
"I love being in Europe and England and being close to my family. Having my mum and dad come to games at Old Trafford and see me down there was special for me. Those are memories I cherish.
"I would love to get back to England, but I don't feel in a rush to get there, but I want to keep developing and learning."