Erik Ten Hag defied his father's wish to join the family business in order to pursue a career in football.
The Ajax boss is a leading contender to be named Ralf Rangnick's successor with the Red Devils offering him the job following a series of meetings. Ten Hag is reluctant to sign on the dotted line given the magnitude of the task that lies ahead of him as United prepare for a major overhaul in the summer.
The Dutchman is concerned that he won't have full control over new players arriving at Old Trafford, as well as who will be going in the other direction. United are said to be willing to grant his wish but Ten Hag continues to stall as he weighs up his options.
Whatever he decides, money will not be a factor as he is already financially secure coming from a wealthy family. Mirror Sport reported last month that he doesn't need to take a 'big job', as a result, and is more concerned about the direction a club is heading and the way they are run from top to bottom.
Ten Hag's father owns a real estate company and other financial firms and his dad's wish was that Erik would be involved in the family business alongside his brothers. But Erik made it clear he had no interest in pursuing that line of work at a very young age.
He was a brilliant footballer as a youngster climbing through the ranks at Twente in 1990. He bounced around the Netherlands, returning to Twente on two separate occasions with his third spell being his most successful with 160 appearances to his name.
Ten Hag has reached greater heights as a manager, however, impressing during his five-year tenure at Ajax with his exciting style of play. That has attracted the interest from the likes of United but it's not a foregone conclusion that he will accept their job offer.
Gary Neville called his former club a "farce" and doesn't blame Ten Hag for his hesitancy. Speaking on his Sky Sports podcast following the draw between Manchester City and Liverpool on Sunday, he said: "I read this morning that Erik ten Hag wants all these demands met or else he won’t come to the club. You imagine [what will happen] if in the next week or 10 days they can’t get Ten Hag over the line because of what’s happening at the club and how bad the club is and the state that the club is in.
"You look at what Manchester United are doing to players currently, there isn’t a player that has grown really. Look at what they did to Van de Beek, and if you’re Ten Hag I think you’re on the phone to Van de Beek and you’re asking, ‘What’s it like there Donny?’ He isn’t going to be saying anything good, is he?
"So I suspect that Ten Hag’s demands – not financial demands but control, recruitment, structure, youth – are about not being exposed to what other managers have been exposed to in this last 10 years. And that may be too much for Manchester United, and I suspect they’ve got maybe a difficult week or two. I still think they may get it over the line, but the reports this morning were such that Erik ten Hag’s demands are maybe going above and beyond."
