Sridhar Bhamidi
Former Manchester United teenage prodigy Adnan Januzaj admitted that he failed to settle under Louis van Gaal. The Belgian youngster is all set to reboot his career at Real Sociedad.
The youngster was one of the lone bright spots under the disastrous reign of David Moyes. He burst onto the scene as an 18-year-old with a string of consistent and impressive performances for the Red Devils.
The youngster’s impressive performances were so good that Sir Alex Ferguson went on to predict that he would be a United great. Even Ryan Giggs had to admit that Januzaj was a better prospect than a young Wayne Rooney.
There was so much expected of the wiry lad but in his second season at the club, Januzaj had a very tough time. His performances dipped and soon he became a fringe player.
The 22-year-old has recently lifted on his tenure at the club by indicating that Louis van Gaal played a key part in reducing his role and stalling his career. In more ways than one, it was right. Anyone who has been witness to his two goals at Sunderland to announce himself in Premier League football would agree that the Belgian could have been a great asset for the club.
He did have a great time under Moyes, becoming the poster boy of any little success the club had under him. But, under Van Gaal, it all came to nought as Januzaj ended up losing all the confidence.
The winger admits that the loss of confidence under the Dutch tactician is because of the lack of freedom afforded under his principles. He wasn’t enjoying his football under Van Gaal.
Januzaj was quoted by The Sun,
“There was not the same freedom. A winger needs that confidence, a manager telling you, ‘Go and take people on’. With him, it was a slow passing game.
“For some it was difficult. You could see some players were not enjoying the football. The manager and I had many difficult meetings.
“I was frustrated and everyone could see that I was not the same Adnan as the first year. I was sometimes even in the stands.
The Belgian also had some testing times at Borussia Dortmund where he joined on a season-long loan deal only to be terminated on grounds of poor attitude. Januzaj then went on to join Real Sociedad, first on loan and then on a permanent deal, in an effort to resurrect his career.
The scars of Louis van Gaal era will take time to heal and Januzaj knows that he has to bide his time.
