It doesn't feel like goodbye, says Van Nistelrooy

MANCHESTER, England — Ruud van Nistelrooy lingered on the Old Trafford pitch after Manchester United thrashed Leicester City 3-0 on Sunday in his final game as interim boss, but the Dutchman said it was more about celebrating a great moment than a potential goodbye.

United recorded three wins and a draw across all competitions in the four games since Erik ten Hag was sacked and Van Nistelrooy temporarily took charge.

"No (it wasn't goodbye)," Van Nistelrooy said. "I felt like closing this period down and, basically, it was a moment, here and now, and, in my opinion, it was a beautiful one, where circumstances came together and it was beautiful, and it was gratitude from my side to them, and the reception I received was unbelievable."

The fans sang his name during the game's dying minutes, and then serenaded him with chants of "Ruuuud" when he walked over to the Stretford End after the final whistle to applaud their efforts.

With the arrival of new head coach Ruben Amorim on Monday, Van Nistelrooy has yet to learn whether he will be part of the restructured staff. He expected to know late on Sunday or sometime on Monday.

"I can only describe that moment, how I felt it, and as a closure of this block of four games, it felt like a closure for that period, and the future is open, that's the way I felt it," Van Nistelrooy said. "It was a beautiful moment to share that with the supporters. Yeah, special."

United captain Bruno Fernandes did not score in his last 17 games under Ten Hag, but bagged four in four matches with Van Nistelrooy in charge, including United's first goal on Sunday.

The manager said much of his role was to stabilize the team and instill some confidence in the brief time that he had after such a rocky start to the season.

"When I started as an interim at the beginning of this four-game period, (I had) to stabilize and to continue playing what the players are used to, 80-85 percent, while making small tweaks, changing positions and resting players or starting players. That's where you start to introduce your own identity, transfer it to the training pitch, and get the confidence back," said the former United striker.

He will hand them over to Amorim in good shape.

"You can see quality of the players — still not in a consistent way, because there's still a lot to improve — but I think there's a foundation in the past four games where there was strong unity, good spirit, players who were looking for results," Van Nistelrooy said. "And we got four (results) and that, for me, was really important."

The Dutchman said he was initially told he would only be in charge for a game or two, but it was eventually extended to four games to allow Amorim to manage his final matches at Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon before the international break.

Van Nistelrooy said he was thankful for the club's transparency, saying: "It's important to have that clarity, and I appreciated that."

Fernandes continued his scoring streak under Van Nistelrooy with a powerful effort for his fourth goal in as many games.

On his 250th appearance for the club, Fernandes also had a hand in the second goal, as Leicester defender Victor Kristiansen deflected the United captain's header into his own net.

Alejandro Garnacho then came off the bench to rifle in a brilliant third, as United shrugged off its problems in front of goal so far this season.

The Red Devils remain down in 13th in the Premier League table, but are only four points adrift of the top four.

Van Nistelrooy returned to the club where he scored 150 goals in June as an assistant to Ten Hag.

"This spell was a big responsibility, I took it very seriously. I wanted to help and get United into a better place, that was my goal," he said.

"With three wins and a draw, it's a standard where you want to grow to as a club."

Agencies