Sir Alex Ferguson has given his verdict on Louis van Gaal’s reign at Manchester United, suggesting the new Old Trafford manager has been ‘brilliant’.
Ferguson has been a keen onlooker as Van Gaal has gone about the challenge of rebuilding the squad he inherited from David Moyes in the summer.
The Dutch tactician has spent big as he tries to strengthen all the frailties that were evident in the 2013/2014 season and the team looks a lot different from the team that won the League title 16 months ago.
But Ferguson believes in Van Gaal’s approach saying: ‘Louis van Gaal has made a lot of changes and, thinking about that, actually, maybe he’s doing the right thing — to clear the decks and build his own team. Because he’s got the experience and coaching ability to do that. The way he’s approached it, I think he has been brilliant.’
Ferguson has attended a good number of United matches but has deliberately kept his distance from Van Gaal as the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager has settled in.
The former United boss has never once regretted his decision to retire in May 2013. But speaking in an MUTV interview — called ‘Sir Alex: Life After Management’, which will be aired in the club TV station on Monday — Ferguson light-heartedly recalled his first few months as a former manager.
He said: ‘It was the first time I’ve ever had a holiday in my life in December and I’m sitting there at poolside in Abu Dhabi and I said to Cathy: “I should be at Carrington”.’