Robin van Persie rapidly became a fan favourite at Manchester United following his move to Old Trafford in 2012, and was able to erase memories of his days playing for one of the club's fiercest rivals by netting an astonishing 26 Premier League goals in 38 appearances to win the Golden Boot award and fire his new side to their 20th title in the process. However, his second season at the club was slightly less rosy and it soon became apparent the Dutchman has some serious personality problems. Rumours surfaced that he didn't get along with manager David Moyes and, when he was substituted in a 3-0 win over West Brom at the Hawthorns last term, he was caught on camera pouting as he trudged off shaking his head. It's an age-old footballing cliché but no one player is bigger than the club, and someone obviously forgot to remind RVP of that because at times he had ideas above his station in 2013-14. He openly questioned Moyes's tactics on one occasion, with his now-infamous "spaces rant" in which he moaned:
Our fellow players are sometimes occupying the spaces I want to play in. And when I see that it makes it difficult for me to come to those spaces as well. So that forces me to adjust my runs, based on the position of my fellow players and, unfortunately, theyre often playing in my zones. I think thats a shame.
This obvious show of dissent led to former Brentford, Leicester and Notts County manager Martin Allen claiming the Dutchman should be SOLD. The boss - who was once known as "Mad Dog" - said: "It's a very fine line between confidence and arrogance. Clearly Van Persie wants out. Aged 30 and with a poor injury record he's the first one who should be shown the exit door in the summer.
Quite clearly that type of attitude rubs off on the rest and there will be factions and cliques at Manchester United moaning and complaining, talking about how Sir Alex Ferguson used to do it this way or that way. The bottom line is, several of those players are well past their best."
Van Persie only made 21 Premier League appearances last season and scored just 12 goals.
Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.
