Ruud van Nistelrooy has said that he wants to manage Manchester United on a permanent basis in the future, as he prepares to lead the Red Devils on an interim basis for the final time.
The Dutchman was placed in charge of the first team when Erik ten Hag was sacked at the end of last month, and it has been a successful period at the helm for the club's former striker, with Man United winning two and drawing one of their three games under the leadership of the 48-year-old.
Van Nistelrooy will take charge of Sunday's Premier League clash with Leicester City before stepping aside for Ruben Amorim, with the Portuguese's official start date being November 11.
It is still unclear whether Van Nistelrooy will revert to his assistant manager role under Amorim or leave the club, as the new head coach is planning to bring his own staff with him from Sporting Lisbon.
However, Van Nistelrooy has said that he has a clear ambition to one day be the permanent manager of the 20-time English champions.
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Van Nistelrooy wants Man United managerial role on a full-time basis
"Yeah of course I thought this through well when I made the decision to come to United as an assistant coach," he told reporters when asked whether he could see himself as the club's permanent manager.
"I thought that through. I knew that coming to Man Utd was for me a special occasion where I felt I want to be part of this journey with the club, in an assistant role. I have clear ambitions to manage. I made the decision to sign a two-year deal as an assistant and I'm still in that frame of mind, to be fair, to stay in that capacity.
"I've enjoyed it. I've enjoyed it. It gave a lot of energy. I think the reaction of the players was outstanding. I think also as an assistant, you are quite close to players. So the past three months I spent a lot of time with the players and got to know them very well, as human beings but also as footballers, where they are in their development and how I can help.
"And I think that relationship, that is helping now that we are together and we want to achieve something together. That bond is there. That's what I feel, very supported. So that gives a lot of energy and the support of the fans obviously, that was amazing. That gives also lots of confidence and energy, so, so far so good."
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Van Nistelrooy preparing for Amorim "conversation" next week
Van Nistelrooy is expected to speak with Amorim about his plans on Monday, with Man United in action against Leicester on Sunday afternoon before Sporting tackle Braga in the evening.
"That's a good question actually [advice for Amorim]. It's good to wrap it up after Sunday and of course I've been in for the three months in the season and this short spell. From there on, I think it'd be very good to wrap it all up and have that conversation. It's a good question. I'm going to start thinking about it," he added.
"First of all, it was a special period, it is still. I called it an important period because I think it was important to get through the four games as good as we could. I think we've done very well so far, the players reacted very well in the games. Obviously the focus is now to build on that and show that on Sunday with a big game ahead and a massive three points that are there to win.
"So, yeah, I don't know if it will be very emotional. I take it very pragmatic as well, although I'm very proud to be able to fulfil this. We'll see how that will feel on Sunday and other than that, there's not much more news than yesterday evening where I think Ruben and I are both focusing on our teams and our games. He's focusing on Braga with his team and I'm focusing on Leicester with my team. We'll see if things come together in the future."
Man United will enter the clash with Leicester off the back of a 2-0 victory over PAOK in the Europa League, but they were held to a 1-1 draw at home by Chelsea in the Premier League last weekend.
Matt Law
