FORMER Manchester United star Matteo Darmian claims old boss Louis van Gaal was ‘obsessive about rules’.
And the Dutch tactician also told him ‘you are here thanks to me’ during one of his trademark pep talks.
Darmian, 31, was signed by United from Torino in 2015 for £13million.
He spent four seasons at Old Trafford, playing 92 times while winning an FA Cup and Europa League.
Darmian was brought to the Theatre of Dreams by eccentric Dutchman Van Gaal, who had been tasked with getting United back to the top after David Moyes’ disastrous reign.
And Darmian has now revealed the tactician was a stickler for rules on and off the training ground.
Van Gaal also gave the Italian an immediate confidence boost upon arrival by declaring Darmian would have the chance to challenge Antonio Valencia for the team’s right-back spot.
However, Van Gaal made sure Darmian knew who was in charge, adding: “You are here thanks to me.”
Darmian revealed: “Van Gaal was an obsessive about rules. He was the one who wanted me at United.
“One of the first days in Manchester he took me aside and said: ‘You are here thanks to me.
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“’You have my confidence, you will compete with [Antonio] Valencia, know that the name doesn’t matter to me’. It was like that.”
Now at Inter Milan and closing in on the Serie A title, Darmian believes current boss Antonio Conte is the best he’s ever had.
Darmian added: “Conte has great ideas, tactically he’s a step ahead.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
