Louis van Gaal: Ed Woodward Has

By Joshua Walters 

Manchester United chief executive, Ed Woodward has received a scathing attack from former manager of the club Louis van Gaal as he describes him as a figure who has ‘zero’ understanding of football.

Van Gaal, former Netherlands national team coach, in an interview with German magazine 11 Freunde, insists the club is experiencing a lot of problems because of Ed Woodward.

The 67-year-old trainer believes Manchester United is surrounded by a chief executive who knows nothing about football as that was not the case at the previous clubs he managed.

“At Bayern, the people in charge are football men. I always appreciated that. 

“At Manchester United, on the other hand, Ed Woodward was installed as CEO – somebody with zero understanding of football who was previously an investment banker.

“It cannot be a good thing when a club is run solely from a commercially-driven perspective. 

Van Gaal, who joined Manchester United after the 2014 World Cup having signed a three-year-contract was sacked by the club in 2016, spending just two years at Old Trafford as he was replaced by Jose Mourinho. 

But Van Gaal, believes the appointment of his successor was not based on achieving results but rather from a business point of view. 

“I don’t hold it against the club. They wanted Mourinho and he was on the market.

“Appointing Mourinho was obviously interesting from a business point of view,” Van Gaal added.

“He wins games. And for a club like United, the main thing is to win trophies.

“How they are won isn’t the main priority, the English fans see it differently. They accept that the game is not all about attacking but it is also about defending.

“I always tried to defend high up the pitch, to be in the opposition’s half and play the game there.”

Van Gaal in his managerial career, managed top European clubs like Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Ajax and Manchester United before recently announcing his retirement.