A member of Erik ten Hag’s staff has been granted protection during Manchester United’s culling process

Steve McClaren is expected to survive the anticipated release of Manchester United, which could see Erik ten Hag and the rest of his backroom staff at the end of the season.

The former England manager, who returned to Old Trafford when Ten Hag took over as United boss in the summer of 2022, has a long-standing professional relationship with INEOS boss Sir David Brailsford.

Brailsford will play a key role in deciding whether new United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe allows the Ten Hag to serve out the final year of his contract after a disastrous season at Old Trafford.

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Ten Hag’s extended coaching staff would also bear the brunt of the setback – but McClaren is seen as someone INEOS can continue to work with under any new managerial regime.

The 63-year-old struck up a friendship with Brailsford during his tenure at Derby a decade ago. He invited the cycling expert to share his philosophy of marginal gains and his success in turning Britain into the world’s leading nation in the sport with his Rams team, the Mirror reports.

The pair discovered that they had many similar ideas about sports science, psychology and methods of improving athletes.

It was McClaren’s innovative approach that led Sir Alex Ferguson to bring him on board as an assistant in 1999, a key move before United achieved unprecedented heights in the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup. His experience was later shared with Erik ten Hag during his time at FC Twente in the Netherlands.

McClaren is often seen as a trusted figure at the club and there were whispers he could step in for Ten Hag in the closing games of the season, but Ratcliffe chose to keep his faith in the Dutchman with the FA Cup final on the horizon.

Former United striker Michael Owen has even suggested that McClaren’s influence on the current team’s performance is minimal. “I played under Steve McClaren. There’s no way his fingerprints are anywhere near that team,” he commented. “He is a brilliant coach and that team is not coached at all. No way.

“There is no way on earth he has anything to do with that team. It’s impossible. That team has no idea. Steve McClaren is a top operator and I can only believe other people are coaching the first team. He’s a spectator too. “