Manchester United icon set to depart, amidst ongoing changes at Old Trafford: report

Manchester United is on the verge of bidding farewell to a club legend as they navigate through ongoing changes at Old Trafford.

After losing to West Ham United on Sunday, Manchester United sacked Erik ten Hag less than 24 hours later. Plenty of focus has since been placed on Ruben Amorim in the intervening period, with the Sporting Lisbon manager expected to replace Ten Hag within the next month, depending on negotiations over contracts.

Amorim's arrival will likely spell the end of one Manchester United legend's time at the club, however, though supporters would have seen it coming.

Manchester United legend facing exit door

According to the i, Ruud van Nistelrooy expects to leave the club when Ruben Amorim is appointed as the new Manchester United manager.

The Dutchman is currently in charge of the club on an interim basis, taking over following the dismissal of Ten Hag at the beginning of the week. Van Nistelrooy oversaw a 5-2 victory over Leicester City in the League Cup on Wednesday night, and looks set to still be in the Old Trafford dugout as Manchester United host Chelsea on Sunday in Premier League action - potentially even for another month, should Sporting refuse to release Amorim early.

When the 39-year-old does eventually arrive at Manchester United along with his backroom staff and coaches, Van Nistelrooy is expected to step aside despite only having returned to the club in the summer. The 48-year-old became Ten Hag's assistant at the beginning of the 2024/25 season, but his compatriot's sacking means his time at the club will be cut short, too.

Van Nistelrooy spent five successful years at Manchester United during his playing career, scoring 150 goals in 219 games in all competitions while also winning the Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup. His contribution in that period saw him ranked at no.31 in FourFourTwo's list of the best Premier League players of all time.

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After retiring from professional football, he then moved into coaching, taking charge of youth teams at PSV as well as assisting Louis van Gaal at the 2014 World Cup for the Netherlands. He spent 18 months in charge of the PSV first team between 2022 and 2023, too.

In FourFourTwo's opinion, it makes sense that Van Nistelrooy would depart the club once Amorim is officially appointed. The Portuguese boss will naturally want to bring in his own backroom staff, while Van Nistelrooy would also want to pursue other opportunities after getting the taste of management again - albeit as an interim boss.