“Tottenham’s Regret: Rejecting Erik Ten Hag for Lack of Charisma and English Skills – The Telegraph”

The then trainer of Ajax was an important candidate two years ago to succeed José Mourinho at Tottenham, writes The Telegraph. Both parties held talks, but the Premier League club ruled that Ten Hag had too little charisma. His poor English was also a reason to reject him.

Spurs eventually chose Nuno Espirito Santo, but the Portuguese only lasted four months. Antonio Conte then took over and that was not an unqualified success either. The Italian was fired in March. Currently, assistant Ryan Mason is doing the honors, while The Lilywhites hope to appoint a new manager in the summer.

The Telegraph concludes that Tottenham are ‘haunted’ by the decision to drop Ten Hag ‘for reasons that don’t seem too smart in hindsight’. Spurs supporters will wonder what the world would have looked like if the club had not turned its nose up at Ten Hag. They’ll be forgiven for throwing envious glances at the opponent’s dugout on Thursday night. There will be envy and more than a little regret.”

Ten Hag stayed with Ajax for one more season and then left for Manchester United, where she according to The Telegraph be happy with the ‘direct’ Dutchman. ‘Unlike Tottenham, Manchester United is happy with the way Ten Hag communicates. His directness is seen as something positive, as there is no ambiguity in his statements. It is one of his strongest points.’

The twenty-time English champion has seen an upward trend since the arrival of Ten Hag, who, among other things, ended a six-year prize drought and is heading for a Champions League ticket with his team.