PSV almost appointed Van Gaal – Brands

PSV director of football Marcel Brands believes Louis van Gaal was close to joining the club before taking over as Netherlands coach three years ago.

Former Bayern Munich boss Van Gaal had been out of work for more than a year prior to being appointed as Netherlands coach for a second time in 2012 before going on to secure a third-place finish at the 2014 World Cup.

Van Gaal moved on to Manchester United shortly after his exploits with the national side – guiding the Premier League side back into the UEFA Champions League during his first season at Old Trafford.

Fall-outs with manager Ronald Koeman and striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic while at Ajax early in his career tainted an otherwise positive spell with the Dutch giants and Brands believes this put paid to bringing him to PSV.

“Van Gaal was interested and I think he would have come,” the PSV chief told Voetbal International.

“I think he would have been a great manager for PSV, but not everyone inside the club agreed with me.

“There were a lot of mixed feelings about him at the club. Louis had problems when he resigned at Ajax as football director. That was all very sensitive.”