Wesley Sneijder has lifted the veil on his failure in the Premier League.
The 40-year-old, one of the most productive midfielders of his generation, had two chances to move to England.
Sneijder was one of the most productive players in the world during his time at Inter Milan, where he was part of their historic team that won three times in the 2009/10 season.
Just months after winning the Champions League, he helped the Netherlands qualify for the World Cup final after scoring five goals in South Africa.
A year later, iconic Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson came close to knocking Sneijder, the Netherlands’ most capped player with 134 caps, out of Italy by bringing him to Old Trafford.
But despite being willing to join, his representative blamed him for the deal’s failure.
While Liverpool were snubbed by Sneijder in 2013 in favour of Galatasaray after the Reds finished seventh in the Premier League.
Speaking to talkSPORT about why he played in England, Sneijder said: “I’ve had the chance twice.
“The first one for Man United, that’s what my coach got a little bit wrong, my agent at the time.
“And then it was Liverpool, and I chose Galatasaray over Liverpool.
“Simply because the Liverpool of that time was not the Liverpool of today. “
United and Liverpool are now controlled by Dutch coaches Erik ten Hag and Arne Slot, respectively.
And Sneijder believes United, who finished eighth in the table last season, are in a position to win the league against their rivals.
Explaining his reasoning, he explained: “Because they have time for something.
“The coach will stay and they have enough confidence in him to build something. So they’ll be more powerful this season than last. “
Comparing the two coaches, he said: “Either of them are coaches.
“Slot has done a job with Feyenoord and United have a lot of confidence in Ten Hag.
“He has extended his contract because, like Ruud Van Nistelrooy, I have just found out that he will be involved.
“So I think they can do a great job because they have players at United. There has to be a team, they want time.
“That’s what it seems so far, they give time to form a team. I think this season they will win awards. “
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