Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has delivered a harsh assessment on his former club and says they have struggled since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson in 2013, Mail Sport reports.
The former Red Devils defender did not hold back in his criticism of Louis van Gaal’s current side and believes they are a long way off matching the excitement and style that had made the club one of the best teams in European football in the past:
“Everything. In terms of players, the personnel are completely different and the way they play. You associate Man United with pace and power, explosive fantasy in the final third, but that’s not the way it is now,” he said at a BT Sport event.
“Man United fans [are] having to re-educate themselves on how you go in there and what you’re going to see. You’re not going to see what you saw for the last 25 years.”
“It will be a completely different type of football, not football I enjoy watching as much and probably most Man United fans are like that. It’s methodical and really slow going side to side whereas before it was “bang, go,” Ferdinand added.
United have made a steady start to the new campaign and have also qualified for the group stages of the UEFA Champions League after a comfortable 7-1 aggregate playoff round victory over Belgian outfit Club Brugge last month.
However, defeat just before the international break at the hands of Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium means United’s next fixture against fierce rivals Liverpool on Saturday afternoon has taken on added importance, despite the game coming so early in the campaign.
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Both clubs will be hoping to avoid defeat and the psychological blow that would follow as they are likely to battle it out for a top four finish come the end of the season.