‘My son and daughter are important right now’: Robin van Persie reveals he rejected Erik ten Hag’s offer to be part of his Manchester United backroom staff as he and his wife ‘felt a little stability would be nice’ for their kids by remaining in Holland
- Robin van Persie declined to be part of Manchester United’s backroom team
- Van Persie is currently living back in Holland with his wife and their two children
- The 38-year-old scored 58 goals in 105 appearances as a Red Devils players
Manchester United fan favourite Robin van Persie has revealed it was a family-based decision as to why he didn’t re-join the club as part of new manager’s Erik ten Hag’s backroom staff.
The Ten Hag era began on May 16 with Steve McClaren and Mitchell van der Gaag appointed as his assistant managers.
Ten Hag also hoped to convince ex-United striker Van Persie to return to Old Trafford as one of his coaches but was unsuccessful in doing so.
Robin van Persie (left) has revealed he has turned down an offer to be part of new Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag’s backroom staff due to family commitments
Van Persie with wife Bouchra (centre right) and their children Dina (centre left) and Shaqueel
And explaining why he declined, Van Persie explained that family commitments played a key role in his thinking.
The 38-year-old son Shaqueel is currently in the Feyenoord academy, while his daughter Dina is a keen horse-rider.
‘My son and daughter are important right now,’ Van Persie told the Life After Football magazine. ‘The fact that they have both found their passion is great. A hobby is nice, but you hope that they really find a passion.
‘Dina succeeded in doing that with horse riding, she’s totally into it, and Shaqueel has the same thing with soccer. My wife, Bouchra, is developing all her talents with our projects and that’s great to see. We’re enjoying ourselves together.
Shaqueel van Persie (left, pictured in 2019) is currently part of the Feyenoord academy
‘In London, when I played at Arsenal, we moved five times. We also lived in Manchester and Istanbul. All in all, we were away for almost fourteen years.
‘But then we thought ‘what’s good for the kids now?’ and felt a little stability would be nice.’
Van Persie scored 58 goals in 105 appearances for United across three seasons (2012-13 to 2014-15).
The Dutchman was the catalyst for the Red Devils winning their last Premier League title in 2012-13 – scoring 26 times in 38 matches.
Van Persie scored 26 goals in 38 Premier League games in 2012-13 as United won the title
