Van Gaal, manager of both Barça and Man United

Van Gaal, manager of both Barça and Man United

The Dutchman is the only coach to have been in charge both at the Camp Nou and at Old Trafford

Louis Van Gaal, who a few days announced his retirement on the VTBL show on RTL, is the only man who has managed both FC Barcelona and Manchester United, who will be meeting in the Champions League quarter finals.

It was the Dutchman who gave debuts to future Barça legends of the calibre of Víctor Valdés, Carles Puyol, Xavi Hernández and Andrés Iniesta, while in his time at Old Trafford he gave the first starts to England internationals Jesse Lingard and Marcus Rashford.

Vaan Gaal i Carles Puyol

Twice at Camp Nou

Van Gaal first came to Barcelona in the 1997/98 season, and won the league and cup double in his first year, the first time in 39 years that the team has achieved the feat.

He followed that success with another Liga title in the following campaign.

The third season brought nothing in the way of silverware, although Barça did finish second in the league and reached the semis of both the Copa del Rey and the Champions League.

He returned as manager at the start of the 2002/03 season, but the team struggled and he was replaced by Radomir Antić in January 2003 after 200 games in charge across his two spells.

103 games at Manchester United

At Old Trafford, Van Gaal replaced Ryan Giggs, who had been in the caretaker’s role since the departure of David Moyes at the start of the 2014/15 season. Manchester United finished fourth in the Premier League, in the following campaign won the FA Cup by beating Crystal Palace in the final. 

Força Barça
Força Barça

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