Alex Ferguson’s former right-hand man Mike Phelan Thursday said he remained committed to Australia’s Central Coast Mariners despite being appointed first team coach at Old Trafford alongside caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Phelan is sporting director of the A-League side – the club that handed an unsuccessful trial to sprint king Usain Bolt – and vowed to be back “as soon as I can”.
“Taking on a temporary coaching role at Manchester United is extremely exciting,” he said on the club’s website, but added that he was “still a Mariner”.
“I’ve put something in place that I want to see through. This might be a small distraction, but it’s with one of the biggest clubs in the world that I simply couldn’t turn down,” he said.
“Part of the discussion with Manchester United was that I will still be available for the Mariners, this is a dual role. I’m not going anywhere, I am one phone call away from anyone at the Mariners.”
Phelan, a former United player, worked as first team coach and then assistant manager with Ferguson for more than a decade.
