Ex-Man Utd boss Louis van Gaal prefers James Milner to Lionel Messi as he is so versatile

FORMER Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal has revealed he prefers James Milner to Lionel Messi due to his versatility.

The Dutch coach took aim at the 32-year-old Barcelona legend by claiming he had held the Spanish giants back from winning more Champions League finals.

Barca last won the crown in 2015 and appeared to be on course to reach the final this year before they were stunned 4-0 at Anfield by Milner and his team-mates 4-0 in the second leg of the semi as the Reds marched on to claim glory over Spurs last month.

Van Gaal, 67, is a former Barca boss and still holds the club close to his heart.

But in an interview with Spanish newspaper El Pais, he took aim at the “individual” Messi.

He said: “I like Messi as an individual player.

“He is the best individual player in the world because his statistics are amazing.

“But why has he not won the Champions League since four years ago? Why? As a captain, you must ask yourself why the team does not win in Europe.”

He continued: “Barça has a wonderful squad.

“You cannot say that [Ivan] Rakitic is bad, or that [Philippe] Coutinho is bad, or that [Jordi] Alba is a bad player, or [Marc-Andre] Ter Stegen is a bad goalie, or Arthur or [Arturo] Vidal (are bad).

“I think Messi is also responsible for what is happening in Barcelona, not just the coach.

“Players have a substantial part of responsibility for what happens on the team.”

Despite his scathing words for Messi, Van Gaal did admit his admiration for Liverpool veteran Milner.

He said: “In the final of the Champions League, Milner played as a defender and as a midfielder. It’s great that he can offer that at 33.

“The forwards? Everyone plays for the team. [Mohamed] Salah, [Roberto] Firmino and [Sadio] Mane work very hard in defence because [Jurgen] Klopp wants to press.

“He saw the light a few months ago: he understood that pressing is not always the right thing to do. It depends on the conditions.

“His Dortmund was more offensive than his Liverpool side, where he learned that sometimes you have to hold a little bit, collect your lines and counterattack.

“That is good for Salah, Mane and Firmino because they are very quick to take advantage of the spaces behind the rival defence.”