Louis van Gaal Explains Why He Snubbed Tottenham For Manchester United

Louis van Gaal has revealed he snub Tottenham before moving to Old Trafford, claiming that managing "Manchester United is the biggest challenge of all the jobs in football".

The Dutchman was approached by Spurs following the departure of Tim Sherwood.

However, after Van Gaal rejected their proposal, Tottenham opted to sign Mauricio Pochettino, who left Southampton for his new role, while the ex-Netherlands manager replaced David Moyes at Old Trafford.

"I could have opted for an easier job. If I had gone to Tottenham, the job would not have been as enormous as here at United," Van Gaal said to The Mirror newspaper.

"I could have easiily gone to Spurs. But I chose the biggest challenge of all the jobs in football. And I really wanted to join the number one club in the country, not Tottenham.

"Financially, Tottenham was kind of as attractive as Man United. But, in my eyes, Man United is still the number one club in England, Tottenham really is not."

"I want to end my big coaching career here, at Manchester United. I really want to bring the championship here to the people of Man United."

And Van Gaal insists he is happy about his decision even though his era at United has started without any victories in his four first games in charge – securing just two points in three Premier League games and suffering a humiliating 4-0 defeat against MK Dons in the Capital One Cup.

"No, I don't regret taking this job," he said.

"Yes, it is a massive job I have taken on at Manchester United. I realise that. And the situation is not worse than I thought - I knew what I would find on my plate."

Meanwhile, Van Gaal has hailed the club for its work during the summer transfer window after it invested around £150m in overhauling the squad, with Luke Shaw, Ander Herrera, Marcos Rojo, Angel di Maria, Daley Blind and Radamel Falcao joining Manchester United.

"My start at Bayern was just as bad as my start with Manchester United," he said.

"But the big difference was that at Bayern, I had already been called in for a major showdown with [former Bayern Munich president] Uli Hoeness, who wanted an explanation. And what have United done? They have just bought more players for me. They kept buying players.

"They are supporting me. That is a sign of trust in the manager. I feel that. I feel their trust and belief in my ability. It is not just a matter of believing in my football philosophy but in me as a person too."