Manchester Metropolis and Manchester United face off for the 188th time this weekend, but for respective managers Pep Guardiola and Erik ten Hag the competition on the Etihad Stadium will likely be their first ever assembly.
That isn’t to say the pair are unacquainted with each other, although. In actual fact, that would not be farther from the reality, with the 2 males sharing very comparable philosophies and having beforehand labored intently at Bayern Munich.
Whereas Ten Hag could also be a 12 months older than his counterpart at 52, the Dutchman was the apprentice and Guardiola the grasp throughout that overlapping interval in Bavaria between 2013 and 2015.
“That point was enormously beneficial for me. I bear in mind it properly,” Ten Hag informed Bild in 2018. “Many individuals in Holland shook their heads after I left the Eredivisie for the Regionalliga.”
No marvel. Ten Hag was a burgeoning head coach after guiding Go Forward Eagles to their first promotion in 17 years in his solely season on the membership.
The choice to then take cost of Bayern Munich II, the reserve aspect of a Bayern staff that had been having fun with a interval of sustained success beneath Guardiola on the time, was a giant shock.
For Ten Hag, the sideways transfer – at finest – was thought-about a possibility to study from Guardiola and a greater path for his long-term profession. The previous decade means that was the proper name.
Ten Hag went on to handle Ajax for four-and-a-half years following success with fellow Eredivisie membership Utrecht, earlier than being handpicked by United as the person to convey trophies again to Outdated Trafford – or in order that they hope.
“I by no means regretted the choice,” Ten Hag recalled in that interview with the German outlet. “Working for a membership as large as Bayern with such formative personalities as Pep Guardiola and in addition Matthias Sammer was like successful the lottery.”
Ten Hag’s possession-based fashion – although adaptable as we have now come to see in his first two months at United – has drawn pure comparisons to compatriot Johan Cruyff, a person Guardiola himself took quite a lot of inspiration from.
Quite than the ‘Whole Soccer’ that was developed and famed by Cruyff, although, Ten Hag seemed to do issues the ‘Guardiola Method’ throughout his 4 full seasons with Ajax, throughout which period he gained three Eredivisie titles and took the Dutch giants inside seconds of a Champions League remaining.
“His philosophy is sensational,” Ten Hag stated of Guardiola in 2019. “What he did in Barcelona, Bayern and now with Manchester Metropolis, that attacking and enticing fashion sees him win rather a lot. It’s this construction I’ve tried to implement with Ajax.”
Implement it he did, and so impressed had been United they not solely went all out to land the Dutchman, regardless of it being obvious that Mauricio Pochettino can be accessible, they allowed him to even have an enormous say in switch exercise forward of his first season on the helm.
Of the 5 senior gamers signed, two joined straight from Ajax (Lisandro Martinez and Antony), one had beforehand performed for the Eredivisie aspect and got here by their youth ranks (Christian Eriksen), and one other had spent his whole profession up to now enjoying within the Dutch high flight (Tyrell Malacia).
With that degree of turnover each on the sphere and within the dugout, persistence was all the time more likely to be required amongst United followers. Two video games in, the Pink Devils discovered themselves backside of the division after dropping by an combination 6-1 scoreline towards Brighton and Hove Albion and Brentford.
Not a lot ‘Whole Soccer’, however ‘Whole Garbage’ within the view of many. Whereas not as excessive, Ten Hag additionally made gradual begins at earlier golf equipment, together with first aspect Go Forward Eagles when drawing two and dropping one in all his first three video games, and in addition at Utrecht with a report of two wins, two attracts and two defeats.
With 4 wins from 4 because the Brentford debacle, it’s honest to say Ten Hag has slowly gained supporters over forward of his first style of the Manchester derby. Not that it has come as any shock to Guardiola, the person searching for a fifth Premier League title prior to now six seasons with Metropolis.
“He’s a top-class supervisor and his groups are a pleasure to observe. Watch his Ajax staff and also you see his qualities,” Guardiola stated upon affirmation of Ten Hag’s appointment at United in April.
“To outline a supervisor you simply have to check out his groups for a very long time and this can be a staff the place their supervisor makes them play. There’s little question about that. However the relationship we had was extremely good.”
In an alternate universe, Ten Hag would have spent one other season or two within the Dutch capital earlier than succeeding Guardiola within the Etihad Stadium dugout. Certainly, Guardiola stated as a lot earlier this 12 months.
“Are you asking me if Erik ten Hag might be right here? Undoubtedly,” Guardiola stated at a information convention when requested if the then-Ajax coach was the suitable kind of candidate to exchange him in the future.
As an alternative, it is going to be Guardiola versus Ten Hag, Metropolis towards United this weekend on a day when any kind of friendship or respect will take a again seat.
For Guardiola, it’s one other alternative to show why he stays a real grasp; for Ten Hag, an opportunity to indicate that his apprenticeship has been put to good use.