Wayne Rooney has been speaking about his former Manchester United teammate Memphis Depay.
The Dutch winger arrived at Old Trafford in 2015 after being touted as one of the best players in the Eredivisie. He helped PSV Eindhoven win the league title the season before, scoring 22 goals in the process.
Depay was signed by Louis van Gaal, who he impressed under for the Netherlands at the 2014 World Cup. He was very much a player the ex-United manager knew and trusted, so he sanctioned a transfer worth £25 million for him.
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However, other than brief glimpses of excellence, Memphis struggled to make an impact and he lost his starting payer midway through the season. It got so bad for the youngster he didn’t even make the squad for United’s FA Cup final victory over Crystal Palace.
In a game against Newcastle in August 2015, Memphis lost possession a whopping 35 times and his attitude did him no favours, according to a story Rooney told The Sunday Times.
“He came on at Stoke away and messed up for their goal,” Rooney says.
“So, Louis van Gaal made him play for the reserves the next day. I said, ‘Look, it’s a bit difficult [for you]. Just don’t come in with all your fancy stuff.’
“And he turned up for the reserve game in his Rolls-Royce, wearing a leather jacket and a cowboy hat. And I just thought, ‘What’s the point?’
“But Memphis is a lovely lad and it’s good to see things going well for him now.”
Talk about flashy! I don’t particularly mind what appearance a football prefers as long as he’s performing for United.
Memphis has since gone on to join Lyon after featuring just five times under Mourinho. He scored 22 goals in 51 matches last season and helped the Ligue 1 outfit qualify for the Champions League.