Ruud van Nistelrooy expects clarity on his future by the end of Monday after his interim reign as Manchester United manager ended with a 3-0 win against Leicester and “special” Old Trafford send-off.
Having seen his goal-laden first spell as a player come to an acrimonious end in 2006, the fan favourite returned to Old Trafford over the summer as one of Erik ten Hag’s assistants.
Van Nistelrooy stepped up as interim boss following Ten Hag’s sacking and hands over to new head coach Ruben Amorim having ended his temporary stint with a much-needed league victory against Leicester.
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The Old Trafford faithful chanted the Dutchman’s name from the outset and throughout, with things coming to an emotional crescendo as he went around applauding the fans at the end of Sunday’s game.
“After this block of four games, it felt like closure for that period and the future is open,” Van Nistelrooy said. “That’s the way I felt it.
“It was a beautiful moment to be able to share that with the supporters and special.”
Asked if it felt like it could be goodbye given his place in Amorim’s new-look coaching staff is unclear, Van Nistelrooy said: “No, I felt like closing this period down, if you say it like that.
“Basically it was a moment here and now, and that was the beauty of the moment in my opinion, where circumstances came together.
“It was a beautiful moment and it was gratitude from my side to them, and the reception I was able to receive was unbelievable so I can only thank them.”
Amorim starts work at Old Trafford on Monday, having led Sporting Lisbon for the final time in their league match against Braga on Sunday night.
The Portuguese has already confirmed he will be bringing in his own staff, raising doubt over whether Van Nistelrooy will still be an assistant at a club he has a deal with until 2026.
Manchester United interim manager Ruud van Nistelrooy (centre) is waiting to discover his future at the club (Martin Rickett/PA)
“I appreciated the clear communication of the club that it was an interim spell for a short term,” the temporary boss said. “It could have been one or two games even, that was the first communication, and they kept me in the loop.
“They said ‘OK, it’s going to be four, it’s going to be announced a new head coach’, etc, etc.
“So, for me, it is important to have that clarity and I appreciated that.
“In the end, the most important thing is this football club, and I’m here to support that in my role.
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“As I said, I want to continue doing that in the future and now also the communication was OK (that) ‘after the block of four games, there will be communication towards you and your colleagues that are in an uncertain situation’.
“So, I expect to hear today or tomorrow from them.”
Amorim is sure to be grateful to Van Nistelrooy for changing the mood around Old Trafford by securing Carabao Cup progress, a first Europa League win of the season and four Premier League points.
Sunday’s 3-0 win came courtesy of a Bruno Fernandes strike, the skipper forcing a Victor Kristiansen own goal and then substitute Alejandro Garnacho curling home.
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The 20-year-old Argentina winger’s celebrations were subdued having been impacted by recent criticism, leading Fernandes to speak to him on the pitch and praise him after the game.
”Garnacho scored a banger but didn’t celebrate like he should because he thinks he has lost faith from some fans,” Fernandes told BBC Sport.
“I told him people will always moan but lots of people like you and enjoy what you do. I told him to celebrate, it was something special.
“He is a special player, we have difference makers. They are the ones who win us games. We want them to score every game but that isn’t going to happen.”
Leicester boss Steve Cooper felt the 3-0 scoreline was harsh on his side (Martin Rickett/PA)
While United go into the international break on the back of a win, Leicester boss Steve Cooper felt his side performed better than the scoreline suggests.
It represents a heaviest Premier League defeat of the season for the promoted side, who will be now without full-back Ricardo Pereira for a lengthy period and are still assessing fellow absentee Jamie Vardy.
“(Vardy) picked up quite a nasty knock to his back last week, and he just didn’t manage to shake it off, so we’ll have to see how that goes,” Cooper said.
“We are still sort of trying to work out exactly what it is. Riccy’s more conclusive – a serious hamstring injury and is going to be ruled out for four months, so that’s a blow, especially for him.”