Edwin van der Sar has disclosed he held talks with Manchester United over an executive role, with the former goalkeeper also giving his verdict on current keeper Senne Lammens
11:04, 23 Feb 2026Updated 11:15, 23 Feb 2026
Edwin van der Sar has disclosed previous talks over a possible return to Man Utd.(Image: The Overlap)
Manchester United legend Edwin van der Sar has revealed that he discussed a potential return to the club in an executive capacity while in a similar role at Ajax. The Dutch international spent six seasons at Old Trafford following his switch from Fulham in 2005.
He featured in 266 matches for the club, recording 135 clean sheets, before calling time on his career in 2011 aged 40. Soon after retiring from playing, he joined boyhood club Ajax in a directorial position.
He was promoted to Chief Executive Officer in 2016. He stepped down from his position in 2023 following the club’s failure to secure Champions League qualification after finishing third in the Eredivisie.
Edwin van der Sar is a legend at Old Trafford(Image: PA)
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The 55-year-old has shared that there was a possible opportunity to join United in a similar role, having spoken to the club on two occasions.
Speaking on The Overlap, he said: “Yes, I spoke to Ed Woodward twice about taking up a role at Manchester United, but at that point, I didn’t think my job was finished at Ajax with the path we were going on – we were not there yet.
“But I had two good conversations with him on two separate occasions about a role, probably alongside him.”
The goalkeeper situation has dominated conversations at Old Trafford throughout recent campaigns. Andre Onana joined Turkish Trabzonspor in the summer, with Senne Lammens arriving as his replacement. The Belgian has been praised for his displays, and Van der Sar has predicted that he will remain at the club long-term.
Senne Lammens has impressed in his first season at Manchester United. (Image: Marc Atkins, Getty Images)
“He’s doing well,” he said. “Of course, it’s only been seven or eight months.
“But it certainly looks like he knows the physicality of the Premier League – I see him coming for balls in the penalty spot and he claims them with confidence, makes saves when needed, not looking to make saves when not necessary.
“I’m not here day-to-day and I don’t see all of the games, but he looks like he has a good package with him to be here [Manchester United] for a long time.”
Van der Sar experienced a health scare just weeks after departing Ajax, suffering a bleed around the brain. He has since made a full recovery and is relishing additional time away from his career.
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“What was nice for me was that I wanted to have a rest, take a year out of football, go to some other clubs and learn some new things,” he said.
“Wake up when you want, walk the dog, go swim in the sea, go on holiday. I went to New Zealand for two months with Annemarie [his wife] – nice things that I never had the chance to do before.
“I started playing at 18 or 19, finished at 40, and at 41 I became one of the directors at Ajax until 53, so I thought it was the right time to take a step back. That’s taken a little bit longer than I originally thought, to be fair, but we are enjoying ourselves very much.”
