Former Manchester United defender, Rafael, has claimed Louis van Gaal asked him to leave the club because he “hates” Brazilian players.
In the past, Rafael described Van Gaal as “one of the worst” coaches he has ever worked with.
The season before Van Gaal took over, the 31-year-old had been a fairly regular starter at United.
But in the Dutchman’s first season in 2014/2015, he was reduced to just 11 first-team appearances.
Van Gaal then sold him to Lyon in 2015, ending Rafael’s seven-year stay at Old Trafford.
Rafael’s twin brother Fabio also left United in 2014, the year van Gaal arrived.
“I never got an explanation. When Van Gaal arrived, he just said: “OK, you leave”.
“He came in with an idea of the players he wanted, and didn’t want, and set about making those changes instantly. He never explained it to me.
“But I’ve heard a few explanations from other people and, even before he arrived, everyone was telling me, “He hates Brazilians”.
“I don’t know if it’s true or not but I heard it started with Rivaldo when Van Gaal was manager of Barcelona. He put Rivaldo on the bench and Rivaldo started speaking badly of him, trying to sack him, you know. After that, they say he started to hate Brazilians: “Those Brazilians love to sack managers”, something like that,” Rafael told The Athletic.
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