BARCELONA legend Hristo Stoichkov launched a scathing attack on “d***head” Louis Van Gaal and said “many suffered in football” because of the former Manchester United boss.
Stoichkov worked with Van Gaal at the Nou Camp for a season and accused the manager of wrecking the career of Argentine midfielder Juan Roman Riquelme, among others.
Hristo Stoichkov launched a scathing attack on ‘d***head’ Louis Van Gaal
Stoichkov worked with Van Gaal at the Nou Camp for a season
Stoichkov told Radio Impacto: “Why didn’t Riquelme triumph at Barca? Because he had a d***head like Van Gaal as his coach.
“It’s clear, isn’t it?
“He did not succeed because of the way Van Gaal put him on the field. But even so, the first year in Barcelona he also enjoyed a lot.
“I enjoyed his goals, passes, plays, stepovers, but when one comes who wants to invent one thing from something else, it’s impossible.
“He did good things that must be recognised but many have suffered in football due to his silly things.”
Van Gaal managed Barca from 1997 – 2000 winning two LaLiga titles but he left to manage Holland, with Stoichkov also departing in 1998 to CSKA Sofia.
Why didn’t Riquelme triumph at Barca? Because he had a d***head like Van Gaal as his coach. It’s clear, isn’t it?
Hristo Stoichkov on Louis Van Gaal
The Dutch boss did return for a season in 2002, where he signed Riquelme for £10million.
And Stoichkov, who won consecutive league titles under Johan Cruyff, insisted there was no comparison between the two managers.
He said: “I suffered him.
“He entered the locker room and said that there was a lot of Cruyffism.
“And of course, I thought, ‘Where is Johan and where are you? There was a big difference.”
Van Gaal managed Manchester United from 2014 – 2016 but came under fire from former players Angel Di Maria and Javier Hernandez.
Speaking on radio station France Bleu, Di Maria said: “I only stayed one year. It wasn’t the best period of my career, or they didn’t let me have my best time there.
“There were problems with the coach at the time.”
Hernandez said: “Van Gaal likes routines, timetables are always very rigid.
“He’s very strict on discipline.
“Ancelotti is more like (Sir Alex) Ferguson, he’s more liberal. Ancelotti has a bit more contact with us and he is more relaxed.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
