Erik ten Hag refused to answer a question on Manchester United's defeat to Arsenal on Saturday to "show respect" for Ralf Rangnick and his backroom staff.
The Red Devils were trounced 3-1 at the Emirates, a result that leaves them six points behind the Gunners in fourth having played a game more. They are currently sixth in the Premier League and could realistically finish as low as eighth this term.
It's been a poor season for United, who sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in November. Rangnick was appointed interim manager until the end of the season, yet he hasn't improved their fortunes on the pitch and will be succeeded by Ten Hag this summer.
The Dutchman will have a huge job on his hands, as he's been tasked with ending United's wait for silverware. The club's last trophy came in May 2017, when they defeated Ajax in the Europa League final. Ten Hag was appointed Ajax boss six months later.
He will also need to complete a rebuild of the squad, with Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Edinson Cavani and others out of contract in June. United boast one of the oldest squads in the Premier League and are in desperate need of some youthful talent.
Although Ten Hag has a full in-tray waiting for him at Old Trafford, he's determined to win the Eredivisie title for a third time before he leaves Ajax. The Dutch giants are currently four points clear of PSV in second with four games remaining.
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"I don’t have an opinion about that because I show respect for the people who are at Man United now," said Ten Hag after Ajax's 1-0 win against NEC on Saturday afternoon. "And, as I’ve said, I am responsible for Ajax and that is what I give comment on."
The 52-year-old added: "I always keep concentrated and focused on the job I have to do, it doesn’t matter what’s around me... you always spend time on the future, but my head and my energy is for Ajax."
Although Ten Hag doesn't want to talk about the future, Rangnick is happy to do so. The German, who will start a two-year consultancy role at United this summer, has told his successor he must perform an "open heart operation" to fix the stuttering team.
"There is a lot of work, for sure," said Rangnick after being asked what Ten Hag will be thinking. "We knew that before the game. We showed what football we can play. Although we had to deal with the two early goals we still showed the attitude.
"There is nothing about the attitude of the players we should fault today... we showed an improved performance but in the end a disappointing result. I think we bounced back well from the early goal and had numerous chances in both halves to score more goals."
United, like Ajax, have four league games remaining. They host Chelsea and Brentford in their next two fixtures before completing trips to Brighton and Crystal Palace to finish the season.
