Manchester United coach Louis van Gaal has admitted that he predicted Adnan Januzaj would struggle on loan at Borussia Dortmund.
The Belgian international shone for the Red Devils at the beginning of the season when he shone in a Premier League match against Aston Villa, but was nonetheless deemed surplus to requirements by the Dutch coach who saw fit to send him on loan.
However, Januzaj failed to impress during his six-month spell in the Bundesliga—managing only 159 minutes for BVB in the top flight—and returns to United after having his temporary spell with the club cut short prematurely.
Indeed, United find themselves in need of offensive reinforcements, with summer signings Anthony Martial and Memphis Depay failing to impress consistently enough since moving to Old Trafford on big-money deals during the summer.
Speaking to MUTV [as per Goal], van Gaal has revealed that he his glad to have the 20-year-old back, but—somewhat bizarrely—has admitted that he predicted the youngster would find the going tough in Germany all along!
“I hope he can show his talents,” the Dutch coach began. “I believe in the talent of Adnan Januzaj.
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“I’ve seen this before, and I had foreseen that if would be difficult in Dortmund. Unfortunately, I was right.”
The manager’s admission begs the question, if he forecast that Januzaj would struggle in Germany, why on earth did he send him on loan to the Bundesliga?!