Louis van Gaal’s tenure at Manchester United was filled with controversies and despite starting the 2014/15 season as one of his preferred right-backs, Rafael endured a torrid time under the Dutchman.
The Brazilian had his breakthrough campaign in Sir Alex Ferguson’s final season and looked like a long-term replacement for Dani Alves in the international set-up, too.
Instead, the Old Trafford fan-favourite joined Lyon after failing to impress Van Gaal. Since then, the 31-year-old has been vocal in his support of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and the project at Manchester United.
Rafael, who plays for Istanbul Basaksehir now, has come to the defence of Solskjaer once again and has insisted that United ‘are getting back’ and that improvement under the Norwegian boss is there for everyone to see.
The former Fluminense star, who joined the club the year after Solskjaer ended his playing career at United, made an emotional statement on the manager and will hope to be vindicated at the end of the season.
“I did an interview one year ago and I said then, ‘Be patient’. Now, people can see United are getting back,” Rafael told The Athletic.
“They grew last season. If you cannot see that United are not better than before, you are not watching the same sport as me. And I hope they lift this trophy (Premier League) because I love Manchester United and I love Ole, too.”
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