Ruud van Nistelrooy says representing Manchester United has been a “privilege and honour” following his short spell as interim boss.
The former United striker left the club on Monday – along with first-team coaches Rene Hake, Jelle ten Rouwelaar and Pieter Morel – after four games at the helm.
Van Nistelrooy, who joined the coaching staff in the summer, took temporary charge of United following the sacking of Erik ten Hag last month and capped off his stint in style with a 3-0 win over Leicester in the Premier League last Sunday.
During Van Nistelrooy’s short time in charge, United secured a spot in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals, earned their first Europa League win of the season and picked up four Premier League points.
The announcement of his departure came on the same day as the arrival of new head coach Ruben Amorim, who began work at Old Trafford this week after leaving Sporting Lisbon.
Van Nistelrooy, who scored 150 goals in 219 appearances for the Red Devils, paid tribute to United on social media, adding that the club will “always have a special place” in his heart.
“To everyone at Manchester United Football Club, in particular the backroom staff, the players and the fans. I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your incredible efforts and support. It has been a privilege and honour to represent the club as a player, coach and… pic.twitter.com/G9Z2Ad249u
— Ruud van Nistelrooij (@RvN1776) November 15, 2024
In a post on X, Van Nistelrooy said: “To everyone at Manchester United, in particular the backroom staff, the players and the fans. I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your incredible efforts and support.
“It has been a privilege and honour to represent the club as a player, coach and manager, and I will always cherish the memories we have shared together.
“Manchester United will always have a special place in my heart, and I hope there are many more glory days at Old Trafford very soon – not only because I want the club to do well, but because you all deserve it! All the best and take care, Ruud.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here