Edwin van der Sar discusses future role, makes Man United stance clear

Former Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar has discussed a future role and explained his stance on an Old Trafford return.

Van der Sar, 53, retired from football in 2011 after spending six years at United and winning four Premier League titles, as well as the 2008 Champions League trophy.

The Dutchman would go on to become Ajax’s chief executive officer in 2016, and he quickly proved himself in that role, with the club going on to have a period of great success under the now-United manager Erik ten Hag.

However, Van der Sar decided to resign from his role at the Amsterdam-based club in May 2023 and is now considering the next steps in his career.

“I do think I want to take the next step”, he told Humberto à Paris, as relayed by Voetbal Primeur.

“I will have to find a new goal. For a long time, I had the goal of bringing Ajax up to the European top. Now, I have temporarily lost my goal, but I will find it at some point.”

Of course, Van der Sar has naturally been linked with a role at Old Trafford in recent years due to his affiliation with the club.

There have been major changes behind the scenes at the club since INEOS took charge of operations, but the ex-goalkeeper suggested that a return is not on the cards, joking that there are enough Dutchmen at the club.

He added: “I think there are enough Dutchmen (at Manchester United) at the moment. Let those men get to work on the field.

“I don’t know if I want to work fifty or sixty hours again. Will it be individual projects, something with a federation or something in sports? I have no idea yet. But sports are appealing. That’s the best thing there is.”

United currently have Ten Hag, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Rene Hake and Jelle ten Rouwelaar as their Dutch coaching unit.

Former Man City executive Omar Berrada has also taken the reigns as the chief executive, the role in which Van der Sar excelled during his time at Ajax.

You can never predict what will happen in the future, but a role for the club legend right now is not going to happen, and he will likely be heading for a different challenge in the coming months.

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