Leverkusen, May 26 (IANS) Bayer Leverkusen have appointed Erik ten Hag as the new head coach following Xabi Alonso’s decision to join Real Madrid. The Dutchman will start his tenure at Leverkusen on July 1 and has signed on for a two-year contract.

The 55-year-old was sacked by Manchester United in October and now returns to European football with the 2024 Bundesliga winners.

“Bayer 04 are one of the best clubs in Germany and also among the top clubs in Europe. The club offers outstanding conditions, I’ve been very impressed with the discussions of the management. I’ve come to Leverkusen to continue with the ambition shown in recent years. It’s an attractive challenge to set up something together in this period of change and develop an ambitious team,” said the Dutchman.

Ten Hag was appointed head coach at Manchester United for the 2022/23 season. As the successor to Ralf Rangnick, he finished third in his first season in the Premier League and won the Carabao Cup with the English club. That campaign ended with a narrow defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup final but the following season brought success over the local rivals to lift the FA Cup. After winning two trophies, the end at Manchester United came after two and a half years at the end of October last year.

His first job as head coach was in 2012/13 at Go Ahead Eagles where he achieved promotion to the top flight. Ten Hag then took over as coach of the Bayern Munich second team where he won the Regional League in Bavaria and he stayed for two years.

He returned to the Netherlands in 2015 where he was head coach and sporting director at top-flight club FC Utrecht. The record champions Ajax came calling for Ten Hag shortly after Christmas in 2017 where he led Ajax to the league and cup double in 2018/19. In the UEFA Champions League, there were wins against Juventus and holders Real Madrid before going out at the semi-final stage against Tottenham Hotspur.

“With Erik ten Hag we have brought in an experienced coach with impressive success on the pitch. His six title wins at Ajax were exceptional.

“Our ideas of football coincide. With technically demanding and dominant football, we want to carry on in the Werkself style and aim for the highest targets in the Bundesliga, DFB Pokal and Champions League,” said Bayer sporting managing director Simon Rolfes.

–IANS

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