Two £100m England superstars and keep Scott McTominay – how Erik ten Hag nearly built Man United dream team

Erik ten Hag nearly built what could have been a Manchester United super team. The Dutchman has given an in-depth interview for the first time since his Old Trafford departure. In the wide-ranging piece, he accused Cristiano Ronaldo of letting the team down . Ten Hag won the Carabao Cup and FA Cup in his two years with Man United before he was sacked , and he has revealed how he wanted Harry Kane and Declan Rice . He missed out on both as Kane went to Bayern Munich and Rice joined Arsenal . Both transfers have been very successful and must leave Man United fans wondering what if? He also claims the Man United board made a number of promises to him during the summer of 2024, including keeping Scott McTominay , who was then sold to Napoli . Ten Hag held a meeting in Ibiza and was told the Scottish international wouldn’t depart . Speaking to The Athletic, he said: “That’s why I got disappointed. “‘No selling Scott McTominay’. We would go aligned in the transfer window. I make an argument, a reason: we don’t have scoring abilities. Scott brings scoring abilities and great mentality. He has United in all his veins. “So when they bring up the subject, ‘No’. And in the end they sold him. I got, of course, very embarrassed and disappointed.” Specifically on Rice, the Dutchman revealed that negotiations were quickly shut down by West Ham before he joined Arsenal the following summer in a £105million move, while Frenkie de Jong turned Man United down. He said: “The issue was that West Ham didn’t want to let him go. I think we could have done more to test. We were on one page, they tried, but I don’t know how the process went. “The point is, at Man United you need outstanding players.” And there are not many more outstanding than Kane, but Ten Hag was basically told no. “I said to them, ‘I want only one player — and you know who [Kane]’. “I fought for it. I heard that he was very positive, but I never spoke with him about the issue. I don’t know how the decision process went with John [Murtough], Richard [Arnold], the Glazers. They came to the conclusion. I don’t have the insights in the financials. “I think a club like United, you need these profiles to be successful. Personality, and they are mature, and they’re accountable. “We signed five, six players, young, high potentials. But they are not the finished product. They need guidance from good professionals, like Kane, Rice, and Bruno [Fernandes].” What could a Ten Hag XI have looked like? After hearing Ten Hag’s comments on his failed transfer at Man United, talkSPORT.com have come up with an XI of what Man United under Ten Hag could have looked like. Go a lkeeper Despite it not working out at Man United, Andre Onana was Ten Hag’s buy from Inter Milan. He was seen as the man to allow the Red Devils to play from the back and move on from David de Gea’s poor distribution. In the end, he made too many mistakes and has been shipped out on loan to Trabzonspor in Turkey. Defence Diogo Dalot was an important player for Ten Hag, and despite regular criticism aimed his way, it is very likely that he would have been the man at right-back. On the opposite side, a fully fit Luke Shaw a couple of years ago was still one of the best left-backs in the league. At the heart of the defence, one Ten Hag signing and a multiple Champions League winner. Lisandro Martinez worked with the Dutchman at Ajax, and he arrived to help the Red Devils in build-up. In fairness to the Argentine, his first season in England was his best for the Red Devils. Raphael Varane showed at points he was still an elite centre-back, with injuries slightly ruining his time at Old Trafford. Midfield Had Ten Hag had his way, the base of the midfield would have had a very different look. Yes, Casemiro was good for the Dutchman and Kobbie Mainoo made his breakthrough under him, but they could have had two top class internationals in the form of their life. The first would have been De Jong, with the Dutch midfielder a master at circulating possession and progressing the ball into more dangerous positions. Alongside him would have been Rice to provide that solid base and also all of the attributes we have seen him demonstrate in north London time and time again. Then McTominay would have been there as a great support option. And you would think with a base like that, Bruno Fernandes would have been even more effective than he currently is. Which when you think about the numbers he’s put up, would be quite incredible. Forwards Ten Hag did splash a lot of money on Antony, but that didn’t work at all . So, the right wing spot would have likely been taken by Amad, with Ten Hag focused on bringing through some of the youth players. Marcus Rashford enjoyed an incredible year under Ten Hag in 2022/23 as the England international scored 30 goals in 56 games across all competitions. He was totally electric for the Red Devils and signed a bumper new contract off the back of that. Unfortunately for all involved, he never rediscovered that form, though, he is back in Manchester . And then leading the line would have been Kane. Given he is the second top goalscorer in Premier League history, there is no telling what he could have done wearing a Man United shirt. But for Man United and Ten Hag, this is all a pipe dream as it transpired very differently.