Many former Manchester United players, including Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes, and Ryan Giggs were asked for the position, but none accepted, according to the Man Utd blog.

Claims made by Stretty News say that Wayne Rooney, who is now manager of Derby County in the Championship, was the former player who drew most attention from United's board.

According to the source, Van Persie is now the most likely candidate to work with Ajax manager Guus Hiddink, who is keen to have a former player alongside him.

This appears to be the start of an exciting new era for United, with Ten Hag demonstrating considerable promise during his tenure at Ajax.

It will be intriguing to see if United's gamble pays off, since they may have been better off going with a more experienced candidate.

However, one imagines that someone like RVP could be an excellent liaison between the players and the management.