Man Utd appoint former Premier League striker Benni McCarthy to club’s coaching staff

Manchester United have added former Premier League hit man Benni McCarthy to their backroom staff as first-team coach.

The 44-year-old stepped down as coach of Durban-based AmaZulu in March after helping them qualify for the CAF Champions League, but now joins Erik ten Hag.

The South African, a youth fan of the Red Devils, is a close friend of Ten Hag’s assistant Mitchell van der Gaag and joins former England boss Steve McClaren on United’s staff where he will focus on working with the strikers of the club.

South African legend Benni McCarthy has been added to Manchester United’s coaching staff

Erik ten Hag has already appointed former England manager Steve McClaren (right) to his staff

McCarthy enjoyed a six-year spell in the Premier League in the late 2000s with Blackburn Rovers and West Ham United.

He also won two Eredivisie titles and two domestic cups with Ajax, as well as stints at Celta Vigo and most notably Porto, where he was part of Jose Mourinho’s Champions League winning squad in 2004.

It was McCarthy who scored twice against Manchester United in that infamous Champions League semi-final for the Portuguese side.

McCarthy spent six years in the Premier League, playing for Blackburn and West Ham

The striker helped Porto knock Manchester United out of the 2004 Champions League

That win at the Estadio do Dragao sparked Mourinho’s famous dance along the sidelines of Old Trafford in the return leg after his team knocked United out of the Champions League.

McCarthy recalls: “I support Man United and have always wanted to play for them.

“I loved players like Mark Hughes, Andy Cole and Ryan Giggs. So I was devastated to score twice.

“My dream was to score a goal at Old Trafford, not knock United out.

“I was hammered by Jose Mourinho after the game because I wasn’t very happy. He told me that if I didn’t cheer up, I’d never play on his team again.”

McCarthy will be tasked with confronting Manchester United forwards next season

McCarthy is a self-proclaimed childhood Manchester United fan and wanted to play for the club

The Cape Town-born star has won 79 caps for South Africa during his glittering career and is the country’s record scorer with 31 goals.

McCarthy will be tasked with having United’s front-line sacks of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Jadon Sancho as they look forward to the season opener at home against Brighton next Sunday.

However, it is still unclear whether the South African will team up with United striker Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Portuguese star returned to the club this week, but remains adamant he wants to leave to join a team playing in the Champions League.

Ronaldo was by far United’s top scorer last season, with 24 goals in