WHY VAN GAAL HAS BEEN GOOD FOR UNITED’S YOUNGSTERS
Ahead of the game that could finally end LVG’s United reign, a passionate defence by his friend Patrick Kluivert, the player he made a serial champion
ALUXURIOUS suite inside Amsterdam’s historic Grand Hotel is as good a place as any for Patrick Kluivert to explain that, regardless of Louis van Gaal’s difficulties at Manchester United, he is still worth listening to for any young footballer.
Kluivert made a good enough living out of the game to retire at 32, having played for top European clubs Ajax, AC Milan and Barcelona before a season in the Premier League at Newcastle and finishing with Valencia, PSV and Lille. He won the Champions League, league titles in Holland and Spain and scored 40 goals i n 79 i nternationals for Holland, reaching the World Cup semi-finals in 1998.
He gives Van Gaal huge credit for his career and the United boss often mentions him as an example of his ‘philosophy’ working. At Old Trafford, he has given 14 academy graduates their first-team debuts, including striker Marcus Rashford, 18, whom he has compared directly with Kluivert.
Kluivert (below, right) himself was a quick learner under Van Gaal. He was 17 when the manager plucked him from the Ajax youth team to make his debut in the Eredivisie. He ended that first season by scoring the winning goal in the Champions League final against AC Milan and later the pair were reunited at Nou Camp, winning La Liga with the help of a formidable dressing room that included captain Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho as LVG’s assistant.
Given the history, it is no wonder that Van Gaal has name-checked his first and brightest prodigy more often than some of his own United players this season, as evidence of how he can leave some kind of legacy from his time in Manchester, amid other poor results and criticism of negative football.
Defeat by Manchester City at the Etihad today would leave United seven points off the top four and unlikely to qualify for the Champions League, given that the Europa League route has already been cut off after Thursday night’s exit against Liverpool.
KLUIVERT, now 39 years old and embarking on his own managerial career with the Dutch-Caribbean international team of Curacao, is no fool. He knows Van Gaal is odds against to be at Old Trafford next season and shares the hurt.
Equally, he is convinced from personal experience that United’s younger players could not wish for a better guide. In the case of Rashford, who burst on the scene with four goals in his first two games against FC Midtjylland and Arsenal, he is intrigued that Van Gaal might have uncovered a replica version of himself. ‘Rashford does remind me of myself more than any other current striker,’ he says. ‘I loved the words of Van Gaal that he looks like me on the pitch. I was glad to be compared to him. I hope it also gave Marcus a positive vibe because I did achieve something in football.
‘There are similarities in style. His strength, his movement, his nose in front of goal. He knows where he has to stand — and all this at 18. He will be a very good player, you can see he has the tools.
‘For the youngsters, Van Gaal is absolutely the right manager. He is a fantastic trainer, a perfect human being. He took me from the youth team and gave me a chance to express myself in the highest competition. He gave me confidence, self-belief. He taught me tactically.
‘I remember him telling me that a striker needed to go to the near post eight times out of 10, not only to get the ball but also to make space for the second striker. It focused my mind instead of waiting for the ball. He knew when to encourage me and when to tell me off for a bad game.’
Kluivert kept in touch with Van Gaal through his career and their relationship has continued since the player’s retirement in 2008. Kluivert was his assistant at the last World Cup when Holland reached the semifinals and they still send supportive messages to each other every few weeks. In the circumstances, it is hard for Kluivert to see his mentor go through such a torrid time.
Speculation over the manager’s future has been constant since Christmas and some believe his former No2 Mourinho is already signed up to succeed him this summer. ‘I know Van Gaal very well. The situation will have affected him and it has been difficult for me to watch because we still have a close bond. He’s a proud man and he wouldn’t have expected to struggle so much at United,’ says Kluivert.
‘The people in charge knew what kind of coach they took on, what he achieved with Bayern Munich and Barcelona. I hope he can stay next
year but things are getting difficult. It’s a pity the Premier League hasn’t seen the quality of Van Gaal. Results haven’t been as pleasant as people expect if you have a budget of £300million. It’s not easy.’
The one black mark against a Mourinho takeover is how he is perceived to distrust younger players, a charge Kluivert believes is unfair. ‘If Mourinho sees something in young players, he will play them,’ he says. ‘He is bright enough to look at what the players can do and how they can work with him. If you show qualities and can handle pressure, for sure you get the chance.’
IF it is to be Mourinho, next season’s Manchester derby will be a re-enactment of his clashes with Guardiola in El Clascio.
Kluivert remembers Guardiola as the opinionated and charismatic home-grown Barca captain who held command of his team-mates despite the presence of stars such as Luis Figo and Rivaldo. He was convinced he would make a top manager.
‘Guardiola was our conductor on the pitch. We were his orchestra, he would put the players where they needed to be,’ says Kluivert.
‘Sometimes you’d play high tempo, other times we’d relax, keep the ball and let the opponent come to us. Van Gaal was the boss in the dressing room but Guardiola was his link when the game started. He knew before he got the ball exactly where he’d play it. We knew it too, we’d anticipate the move, our opponents couldn’t. Pep’s teams play the same way now. He’ll succeed at City.’
As for their rivalry, Kluivert says: ‘I am sure if Jose and Pep meet in England they will shake hands. Barcelona-Madrid is the biggest game in the world. I can’t explain the volume of whistles we’d get at the Bernabeu. It was deafening. In the circumstances, it would be strange for them to hug each other before El Clasico.’
Ironically, the one common factor between Pep and Jose is that they both learned their trade under Van Gaal before setting off on their very different journeys as managers.
But Kluivert says: ‘ Van Gaal deserves to be respected the same as Jose and Pep, maybe even more. He started in the game before them and he has helped make them big, as players and coaches. They both owe Van Gaal their thanks. He was there for them at the start.’
It is a message Rashford and other United youngsters would do well to remember.