Van der Sar Reveals RVP Chat

Manchester United legend Edwin van der Sar has revealed how he spent nearly an hour on the phone to Robin van Persie before his countryman decided to move to Old Trafford.

The former United goalkeeper spent six hugely successful years at Old Trafford before opting to hang up his gloves last summer.

He has now admitted that Van Persie did seek his counsel before completing his £24million move to United from Arsenal last month.

Van der Sar says they spoke about two of his former clubs in Juventus and United, both of whom were keen on the player - but United dominated the conversation.

"He called me up and said other clubs were in for him, but because I played for two of them, United and Juventus, he wanted to hear my thoughts about them," he is quoted by the Daily Telegraph.

"So we spoke for five minutes about Juventus and 55 minutes about United.

"He wanted to know how good United were, what he would find there, how the players are, what Ferguson is like, how they train, how the system works.

"He has shown his quality already. I read a statement from Ryan Giggs, saying that United have signed good players and good talent before, but that this one [Van Persie] has everything.

"He has the whole package already, but that doesn't always mean it will work of course. Look at Fernando Torres at Chelsea. His first year was difficult, but I think the signs with Robin are good, though."

Van der Sar also insists that Van Persie could form a potent strike-force with Wayne Rooney - when the England man returns from injury.

"Can Van Persie play with Rooney? I think that's why the manager bought him. They obviously won't play every game, but I think Sir Alex is quite happy with the firepower he has up front.

"United lost the league by a couple of goals last season and I don't think the manager wants to see that happen again."