Holland
striker Arjen Robben will stay with Bayern Munich rather than taking
the opportunity to follow national coach Louis van Gaal to Manchester
United, he has told Dutch television station NOS, Reuters reports.
The Dutch dream of winning the World Cup
for the first time ended with a semifinal defeat on penalties to
Argentina in Sao Paulo. They defeated hosts Brazil 3-0 on Saturday in a
playoff for third place.
Van Gaal will now take over as manager of
United while former Real Madrid and South Korea coach Guus Hiddink will
take over the Dutch team for the second time ahead of the Euro 2016
qualification campaign.
“I have a special bond with him,” Robben,
one of the stars of the Dutch campaign in Brazil, said of the veteran
coach. “He is the most important coach in my career. After the match he
did ask me to come to Manchester.”
It was not clear how serious the offer
was, but Robben, who could be seen laughing while speaking about it,
added: “It is not an option. I will stay at Bayern Munich.”
Robben, who scored three goals in the
World Cup, was in superb form in Brazil and is on the short list for the
Golden Ball award presented to the tournament’s best player.
United were on the verge of signing him
from PSV Eindhoven in 2004, when he met then manager Alex Ferguson, but
the Dutch club said the offer was too low and Robben joined Chelsea.
He later joined Spanish giants Real
Madrid before moving to Bayern, for whom he scored the winning goal in
the 2013 Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund.
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