Van der Sar Open To Manchester United Return

Van der Sar Open To Manchester United Return

By Max Wise

Former Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin Van der Sar is open to the idea of returning to the club as director of football.

Van der Sar is currently the Chief Executive Officer of UEFA Champions League quarter-finalists, Ajax Amsterdam, where he played between 1990 and 1999 and won the elite European competition in 1995.

The former Juventus and Fulham goalkeeper spent six years at Old Trafford, where he won four Premier League titles and another Champions League trophy in 2008.

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has already given his seal of approval to the club’s search for a director of football, and Van der Sar is one of the names many believe could fill the role.

“I know United is a much bigger challenge than Ajax,” he told the Sunday Times.

“United is not just a big and famous club, but also a worldwide brand – yet when you’re inside it’s still a family place.

“I remember when I came from Fulham. Oh, it’s United… but after one day you felt at home. The washing ladies. Mike the chef. Kath (the receptionist). They’re still there.

“You need to cherish that and Ole (Gunnar Solskjaer) is doing a great job at it. But also Ed (Woodward).

“I have the utmost respect for him, what he does for the club. So I don’t need to be the big man.

“I want to feel I contribute, and you can only do it for something you believe in. United is a special place.

“Who knows, eventually? But for the coming years, I’m here.”

Ajax Amsterdam’s reward for dumping out European champions, Real Madrid, is a quarterfinal date with Juventus on Wednesday whiles Manchester United will meet Barcelona for the first time since Van der Sar’s last game as a professional footballer; a 3-1 defeat to the Blaugrana in the 2011 Champions League final at Wembley.