Manchester United lack strong characters in the dressing room, claims Edwin van der Sar

The latter is a run bettered only by Tottenham and with league leaders Liverpool visiting Old Trafford after the international break, things could get even worse for the club. But legendary goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar has claimed that a lack of characters in the dressing room is one of the many reasons why the Red Devils have struggled since Sir Alex Ferguson left the club. Van de Sar went on to add that he believes that while the club may have changed managers quite a few times since Ferguson left, real progress is yet to be seen.

“Of course it's difficult. I left there eight years ago and it was a tremendous last six years of my career, winning four Premier League titles and playing in three Champions League finals. So it's a long way from the position where they are in now. And of course they have changed managers a couple of times now and the real progress is not seen yet, only the thing that they bought in the summer. They bought younger, inexperienced players with a certain desire and hunger, and not like the big names they bought the last six, seven years," van der Sar said reports ESPN.

"I think for ourselves, when I came in the dressing room we had Ryan Giggs, you had Scholes, you had Ferdinand, Neville and even Roy Keane at that time. So I think there's always been strong characters. And I think for the last couple of years the strong characters have disappeared and not making a difference anymore," concluded van der Sar.