Bruno Martins Indi Reveals He is Still in Touch with Manchester United Manager Louis van Gaal

FC Porto and Netherlands defender Bruno Martins Indi has cast a flirtatious glance at Manchester United after revealing he continues to have contact with manger Louis van Gaal.

Martins Indi was linked with a move to Old Trafford during the summer transfer window as the club looked to stage a mass overhaul of their defence, which led to them eventually signing Marcos Rojo from Sporting Lisbon.

The Dutch centre-back joined Porto from Feyenoord in the summer for a £6m fee but United remain in his sights after the 22-year-old admitted he continues to think about working with Van Gaal - the former Netherlands boss.

"Spiritually I still have contact with Van Gaal," he said. "I think about him and I think he also thinks about me."

On his summer departure, he added: "I am glad I didn't leave Feyenoord at an earlier stage. I noticed that I needed this step now.

"When you leave to a foreign country, you get to know yourself very well. In Portugal I only have my wife and child. We're completely on our own.

"You can't visit your family just like that. I think I can handle that better right now than if I had left Holland earlier.

"The Dutch are very calm, they leave you alone. In Porto it is different, I hear a lot: 'Hey Bruno, hey Bruno.' They all want an autograph and a picture with me.

"It's beautiful to be valued but sometimes it is difficult, if for example you want to eat quietly."

Though Van Gaal was linked with drafting a stream of his former players to United during the summer, he only signed one - Daley Blind, who featured in his Holland team during the summer World Cup.

United's early defensive problems, which have forced them to field the likes of Tyler Blackett and Paddy McNair during the first two months of the campaign, are likely to see them make an attempt to sign a defender during the January window.