Van Nistelrooy has impressed everyone at Manchester United with this unexpected feature of his coaching

New Manchester United assistant coach Ruud van Nistelrooy has impressed one and all with one unexpected feature of his coaching, according to reports.

As soon as the legendary striker arrived at the Old Trafford club to join Erik ten Hag’s coaching staff, Van Nistelrooy was immediately burdened with expectations of improving the offensive side of Manchester United’s game.

This lethal finisher, who scored 150 goals in just 219 games in the famous red shirt of Manchester, was also unofficially tasked with mentoring the likes of Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee. Under Ruud’s guidance, the club’s fanbase expects a transformation that would turn both youngsters into world-class forwards.

While Van Nistelrooy has obviously worked on the team’s offensive tactics since, recent reports have revealed that he has impressed everyone with his unbelievably high expertise at the defensive side of the game.

Van Nistelrooy a better defensive coach than most people think

According to a Telegraph report, sources at Manchester United are full of praise for Van Nistelrooy’s natural authority and communication skills. However, it is his defensive coaching ability that has come as a pleasant surprise for everyone around him.

Elaborating on the same, ex-United midfielder and current coach Darren Fletcher has revealed how Van Nistelrooy has remembered all the things he hated the most while facing defenders. And now, the Dutchman is using those experiences and learnings to coach the Manchester United defenders, so they can make life as uncomfortable for opposition strikers as possible.

Jonny Evans added to the RVN praise, stating: “He (Ruud) was talking about when he was under Manuel Pellegrini (at Real Madrid and then Malaga) and real sort of diehard defensive coaches. And I think he learned a lot and he saw real value in it. He’s probably himself quite obsessed about defensive structure and like you say, as a striker, I’m sure that was always quite interesting in terms of where he could score his goals.”

All in all, these qualities show precisely why various European clubs were interested in signing Van Nistelrooy as their first-team coach. But if all goes well, it won’t be long before this club legend adds his name in the contention for being the top coach at his dream club, Manchester United.