Manchester United fans were expecting happy times when Louis van Gaal and Robin van Persie joined forces at Old Trafford.
The Dutchmen enjoyed a fruitful time together in the Netherlands national team and RvP was expected to play a big part in the plans of van Gaal when he took over at Manchester United last summer.
But 12 months on, Van Persie has found himself in Turkey after completing a move to Fenerbahce this week.
The striker spoke to the Sunday Times about his Old Trafford departure and the breakdown of his relationship with Van Gaal and it’s hard not to feel sorry for the player.
“I know Louis as a national team coach and now I get to know him as a club coach,” Van Persie said. “And there is a difference.”
Van Persie revealed that he was hopeful that he could break his way into the manager’s first team plans but that the odds were always stacked against him.
“But I was still thinking we could come back from holiday and start from scratch,” he said. “He had changed his mind about me before. When he took over Holland he said to me ‘You’re the No 3 striker.’ I was ‘O…K…’ but I fought and became the No 1 and his captain.
“But when I came back, it wasn’t an honest battle any more. Fighting to get back in the team wasn’t given to me as an option. He was sending me to Pitch Two. And I’m a mature player. I’m not stupid. I didn’t get angry or emotional. These things are part of football, part of life. You have to make the best out of any situation so I’m doing this by moving on.”
Being left on the bench for United’s trip to Stamford Bridge in April left the forward in little doubt about where he stood with his manager.
“That was one of the first signals things weren’t going in the right direction,” Van Persie said. “I asked to play in the reserves, to get my minutes, but after was on the bench again. The atmosphere changed between me and Louis and people at the club saw it, but I was always professional. At that point I didn’t think to leave. Bouchra was happy. The kids were happy. I was happy in Manchester.”
Having been around for what seems like decades, it’s surprising that Van Persie is still just 31 years old and you’d imagine that he could still do a job at a higher level than a club like Fenerbahce but we shall see how his career progresses in the Turkish Super Lig and maybe this isn’t the last we’ll see of RVP in the Premier League.
