The Finnish billionaire Thomas Zilliacus, who is interested in purchasing Manchester United, has expressed his respect for Erik ten Hag and the way he managed Cristiano Ronaldo's departure from the team.
Thomas Zilliacus, a prospective owner of Manchester United, praised Erik ten Hag as a "great manager," praising him in particular for how he handled the contentious departure of Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Red Devils' six-year trophy drought has come to an end under Ten Hag, who has also placed them on track for a Champions League comeback. During the World Cup break, Ronaldo's high-profile leaving saga seemed to end United's season, but Ten Hag and company have only become better since.
Zilliacus, a Finnish tech entrepreneur, is competing with fellow billionaires Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani for control of Old Trafford. Zilliacus wants to take over the club as its new owner and reap the rewards of the Dutch owner's labor. Zilliacus is the first bidder to publicly inquire about Ten Hag's well-being while Ratcliffe has shook hands with Ten Hag. Ratcliffe is still awaiting the results of his offer.
The former CEO of Nokia stated to Dutch publication NOS: "I think [Ten Hag] is an excellent manager based on what I've observed. It was fantastic what he accomplished with Ajax, and it is equally amazing what he has accomplished with Man United. Since things didn't seem promising at the beginning of the season.
And he had the guts to tell even well-known athletes like Cristiano Ronaldo, "Look, this is me running this and this is how I need to do," which is something I really like. And as a result, Ronaldo left the team, which now appears to have been a wise decision given how much better the team is doing without him.
"I believe he did a fantastic job. Hence, I sincerely hope he stays with the team, and if I were the owner, I would certainly want to see him continue.
At Manchester United, Erik ten Hag and Cristiano Ronaldo had a contentious relationship.
After hearing about the bid, Zilliacus also gave an exclusive interview to Mirror Football the previous week. Competitors privately questioned his offer's sincerity and dubbed it a marketing trick. The 69-year-old, who is from Helsinki and was formerly chairman of the city's football club, HJK Helsinki, the most successful team in Finland, responded, "I don't know where they've gotten that from.
"In a bidding procedure, competitors will naturally try to disparage one another as much as they can. This is a legitimate, sincere endeavor by someone who loves football and the club to acquire ownership, so I'd hope they wouldn't go that route."
Zilliacus added, declaring his intention to succeed the Glazers: "I've gotten in touch with Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim to let them know that this isn't about putting money into a football team in the hopes of making a lot of money because that just isn't the case. It works the opposite way around; you fund the club's success. We're doing this because we adore Manchester United and football in general."
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