Edwin van der Sar holds talks with Manchester United

Manchester United’s rebuild has faced many surprises over the past decade.

Supporters often wonder how things might have been different with other people in charge.

Certain names, especially those associated with successful football operations, often come up in these discussions.

As the club’s structure continues to change, old speculations are reemerging.

A former United great, Edwin van der Sar, has now shed light on a story that never fully came to light at the time.

Since retiring,Van der Sar has stayed closely connected to the executive side of football instead of coaching.

His post-playing career led him back to familiar ground, where he helped manage one of Europe’s most praised football projects in the last ten years.

That success drew interest from other clubs, especially during a difficult time at Old Trafford.

Edwin van der Sar has confirmed that he talked to Manchester United about a senior role behind the scenes.

Van der Sar spoke about this in an interview with former teammate Gary Neville on The Overlap.

After he retired, Van der Sar returned to Ajax, the club where his career began, and later became CEO.

During his time in that position, Ajax enjoyed consistent domestic success, reached the Champions League semi-finals, and played in a Europa League final.

While United was often seen as poorly managed during that time, many supporters admired Ajax’s structure and leadership.

Frustration grew at Old Trafford, especially towards Ed Woodward and the lack of a clear footballing hierarchy.

United did not even have a director of football then, eventually promoting John Murtough from within.

Van der Sar has now confirmed that discussions with United did occur, though the position was not what many fans might think.

“Yes, I spoke to Ed Woodward twice about taking up a role at Manchester United, but at that time, I didn’t feel my job was done at Ajax.

“We weren’t there yet. But I had two good conversations with him on two separate occasions about a role, probably alongside him,” he said.

His comments indicate that any potential role would have involved working with Woodward rather than replacing him.

In the end, Van der Sar chose to stay in Amsterdam, believing his work at Ajax was not finished at that moment.

Since then, United’s structure has changed a lot.

Woodward stepped down in 2021, and INEOS took over football operations in 2023.

Although the opportunity for Van der Sar has now passed, his insights provide a rare look into how close United came to taking a very different path behind the scenes.

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