Tottenham haunted by day they snubbed Erik ten Hag over ‘lack of charisma’
While it is clear Manchester United would love to have a centre-forward of Harry Kane's quality leading their line, Spurs could be forgiven for casting envious glances in the direction of the opposition dugout at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Thursday night.
Envy, and more than a hint of regret one can imagine. Tottenham interviewed Erik ten Hag two years ago as they searched for a replacement for Jose Mourinho but passed on the then Ajax coach for reasons that do not look too clever in hindsight and instead appointed Nuno Espirito Santo, who lasted just four months.
Presented with the same opportunity, United saw something in Ten Hag that Spurs did not and one club's loss – most would agree – has been very much the other's gain. Ten Hag's first season in charge at Old Trafford has not been without its traumas.
Indeed, the task facing Tottenham as they bid to bounce back from Sunday's 6-1 humiliation at Newcastle and keep alive their hopes of Champions League qualification is not unlike the reactions United's manager has had to seek after a series of humblings this term.
Yet there has also been a clear upward trajectory under Ten Hag and some of his early gains at United – not least a first trophy for six years and the possibility of a second with an FA Cup final against Manchester City to navigate on June 3 – are precisely what Tottenham crave as they ponder where to turn next after the messiest of seasons.
The Newcastle debacle forced Tottenham into the unprecedented step of making a second managerial change in less than a month, with acting head coach Cristian Stellini dismissed just 29 days after being named as Antonio Conte's short-term replacement.
It means the task of trying to topple United, and boosting their top-four prospects in the process, will fall to coach Ryan Mason, but Spurs fans may be wondering now if things might have turned out differently had their club not turned their noses up at Ten Hag.
Whereas United feel Ten Hag most definitely has presence, a lack of charisma was cited as one factor behind Tottenham's decision to look elsewhere. That, and language difficulties, with his English considered no more than adequate.
Conversely, United believe, if anything, that Ten Hag's directness has been a fillip because there is no ambiguity in what he says and that his communication skills are among his biggest strengths.
Speak to some staff at Old Trafford and they would be inclined to roll their eyes at such reasoning from Spurs – finding excuses, after all, is not unusual when trying to explain away decisions that backfired – but all that concerns Ten Hag now is finding a way past Tottenham.
"It's obvious they had a really bad defeat," the United manager said. "They are mad and that can be fuel for bouncing back. But it's all about us and an opponent can never be more hungry than us."
That was not the case in United's bruising defeats by Brentford, City, Liverpool, Newcastle and Sevilla, but no one expected this season to be straightforward for Ten Hag and the wider improvement in players and mentality are things the Spurs chairman Daniel Levy desperately wants to see in north London.
This is a big week for both clubs. Defeat for Tottenham could as good as end their top-four hopes while victories for United over Spurs, and high-flying Aston Villa on Sunday, would go a long way towards getting Ten Hag's side over the line.
A repeat of October's 2-0 win over Spurs, which remains arguably their most complete performance of the campaign, would not go amiss.
Twelve months from now, Ten Hag will hope to find himself in the position Manchester City and Arsenal were in on Wednesday night and contesting the title, not a top-four battle, but he knows they cannot run before they can walk. "At this moment we can't dream for that.
"We know where Man United should belong but the reality is we are not in that place. So we have to work hard to get back in that position."
