‘Van Gaal treated us like kids’, says former Man Utd winger

Louis van Gaal has been accused of treating Manchester United players like “kids” by former Red Devils winger Nani.

Nani, who was a key member of the first team at Old Trafford under Sir Alex Ferguson, made only one Premier League appearance following the arrival of Van Gaal, before being loaned out to Sporting Lisbon, and then eventually sold on to Fenerbahce.

And the Portugal international has slammed Van Gaal, whose United future remains unclear, for stripping the club of its identity.

“He didn’t use me a lot in pre-season. I was the player who had the least time in all the games and I was feeling, ‘This coach doesn’t count on me’,” Nani told the Sunday Times.

“He and his assistant were shouting at players like we were kids, like 18-year-olds.

“And I think, ‘This is not the way to treat us because I am professional, I am training every day, I’m doing nothing wrong, I’m putting quality in the training’.

“Now when you see Manchester, it’s not Manchester. With all respect to the players who are there, the personality, the mentality is all different.

“When you see Manchester United go inside the pitch you see a new era.

“Before you had big names, experienced players who represent so many years at the club. Now you see players who are maybe in their first year, their first time in the Premier League. It’s all new.”

Nani’s criticism of the Dutchman resonates with recent reports that many of the young players at Old Trafford view the manager as a “grandpa”.