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Factbox on Dutchman Erik ten Hag, who was sacked as Manchester United manager on Monday after 2-1/2 years in the job.

Born: Feb. 2, 1970, in Haaksbergen, Netherlands. 🇳🇱

PLAYING CAREER

• Ten Hag began his career at Dutch side FC Twente, where he played primarily as a defender from 1989-1990.
• Had stints at Utrecht, De Graafschap and RKC Waalwijk before returning to Twente in 1996, where he finished his playing career in 2002.
• Ten Hag made over 300 league appearances in Dutch professional football.

COACHING CAREER

• Ten Hag started his coaching career in 2012 with Go Ahead Eagles, leading the team to promotion after 17 years outside the Eredivisie in his first season in charge.
• Joined Bayern Munich II in 2013, taking charge of their reserve team and working under the guidance of Pep Guardiola during the Spaniard’s time as Bayern head coach.
• Ten Hag returned to the Netherlands to manage FC Utrecht in 2015, guiding them to a fifth-place finish and a spot in the Europa League through the playoffs.

TEN HAG AT AJAX

• Was appointed Ajax manager in 2017. During his tenure, the club won three Eredivisie titles (2018–19, 2020–21, 2021–22) and two KNVB Cups (2018-2019 and 2020-2021).
• Ten Hag gained widespread acclaim after guiding Ajax to the 2018–19 Champions League semi-finals, the club’s first appearance at that stage since 1997, and beating defending champions Real Madrid 4-1 and Juventus 2-1 along the way.
• Ten Hag left Ajax after leading them to the 2022 KNVB Cup final in April.
• On April 21 that year Ten Hag was appointed Manchester United manager on a three-year contract.
• In his first season in charge he led United to a third-placed Premier League finish and League Cup triumph, ending the club’s six-year trophy drought since a Europa League success in 2017 under Jose Mourinho.
• In the 2023-24 season United finished eighth in the league and won the FA Cup by beating Guardiola’s Manchester City 2-1.
• Ten Hag’s United tenure ended on Oct. 28 after a series of inconsistent performances left United languishing in 14th place in the Premier League with 11 points (W3 D2 L4) and without a win in their three Europa league games which they drew.
• The Dutchman’s last match in charge was a 2-1 defeat at lowly West Ham United following earlier losses to Brighton & Hove Albion, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur.