Nani on Cristiano Ronaldo comparisons, David Moyes and Louis van Gaal as Man Utd hero reflects on spell

Ferguson, never one to rest on his laurels, decided more investment was needed to become champions of Europe. In came Carlos Tevez. Owen Hargreaves, pursued so aggressively 12 months previously, was recruited as well. And United, in a break from tradition, scoured the Primeira Liga for their best prodigies as well.

The Red Devils snapped up Anderson from Porto with Ferguson's brother, who was a club scout, suggesting he had the potential to outshine Rooney. The club also forked out £17million to bring in Nani, a player who had drawn comparisons with Ronaldo for his speed, trickery and eye for goal.

Nani's first years at Old Trafford saw him sit in Ronaldo's shadow. His teammate became the best player on the planet, etching his name into the club's illustrious history. What didn't help matters was that Ronaldo took his compatriot under his wing, with the duo living together alongside Anderson for a period.

Fast-forward to now and Nani has a legacy of his own. He won four league titles at Old Trafford under Ferguson, as well as the Champions League in 2008. More silverware arrived at other clubs further down the line and, in 2016, he and Ronaldo won the European Championships with Portugal - with hosts France beaten in the final.

It would have been understandable for Ronaldo's presence to make life difficult for Nani. However, speaking exclusively to GB News on behalf of online casino experts casino.co.uk, he's now made it clear that was never an issue.

“No, in the first years it was not a problem for me; I was happy," he said. “I knew the talent of Cristiano before I came to Manchester. For me, it was something very nice.

“To hear my name and the people comparing me with Cristiano because, Cristiano was around just before me, he was a very, very good example for the young players, to go alongside his obvious talent.

“In the first year at United, I just wanted to enjoy and play the game.

“As soon as I started getting more mature and experience in the Premier League, maybe sometimes a game was not going well for me or sometimes the moment in a game was not the best for me.

“Then you see some comparisons and the pundits or the media suddenly not giving me my own value from my name, yeah, I start getting a little bit annoyed.

“We spoke about that in some interviews and I think people started understanding the type of player I was in that time, that I wanted to be Nani the football player. After that, people started to respect me, and saw that I was different to anyone else.

“I had no problem with any other comments, so I just focused. I was very confident in the things I was doing on the field, so it no longer was a problem for me.”

United under Ferguson were a force of nature. When the Scot departed in 2013, however, the empire started to crumble. Despite numerous attempts, under a variety of different managers, it has never been successfully rebuilt. Even now, nearly 13 years on, they remain a shadow of the team that dominated the back pages for so long.

Nani stuck around for a time. He was part of the squad that finished seventh under David Moyes, who lasted just 10 months into a six-year contract before he was relieved of his duties.

United's regression, at the time, was startling. A-listers were no longer A-listers. Everybody went backwards. Title-winners were quite clearly frustrated at being told how to win by a manager who had never secured a trophy. Chips were even taken off the menu, further denting morale.

Looking back now, Nani acknowledges the job was an impossible one for Moyes. He does, however, still remember just how irksome some of the Scot's methods could be.

“With David Moyes I think it was a very, very tough job for him. To take the job after Sir Alex Ferguson is very difficult for anyone," he admits.

“When he arrived at the club, the mentality was not fitting to the club and to the players. We were used to something and he came with a different mentality and style of communication.

“He would tell me one thing, then tell me something else, and then after a few weeks behave totally different. It wasn’t working, and there was a lot of frustration in that season. We also had a lot injuries, nobody was playing good. The results weren’t good enough.”

After the misery of Moyes came the appointment of Louis van Gaal, who had forged a reputation as one of the game's finest and most-charismatic managers with glittering, silverware-laden stints with the likes of Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Ajax.

Nani wasn't really given a chance. He was loaned to Sporting Lisbon, then later sold to Fenerbahce. With United stuttering in attack under Van Gaal, the decision to offload the winger raised eyebrows.

Angel Di Maria, Radamel Falcao and Memphis Depay were all signed as part of a Galactico era. It didn't work out, however, with the Red Devils subdued going forward - though admittedly solid at the back.

Nani says, however, that it was his decision to leave Old Trafford. Talks with Van Gaal, ultimately, didn't persuade him into changing his mind. It's something that, looking back, was tough.

“Yes, of course," he said when asked if he wished he'd been given more of a chance to show the Dutchman what he could do.

“Unfortunately, when Van Gaal joined the club, I had made my decision to leave the club, because of all the things before.

“I had the opportunity to talk with him and then I trained a little with the team.

“We had another conversation, but in that, he showed me I was not going to be his first option.

“I was a little bit disappointed. I said, ‘okay, no problem, I'm going to leave’. Then, the season started, and I thought I was showing a little bit of progress, to start the games, and he saw that his idea maybe wasn’t working at the start.

“He came back and then he said, ‘Nani, why you don't stay? I like you, you are improving. I can keep you, we’ll see what can be done’

"I told him, ‘you said I'm not your first option. I'm not here to prove anything. I’ve been at the club for many years, I’ve shown you the type of player that I am.’

“I’d already made my decision; I wanted to leave, but I don't have any problems with him.

“I didn't have any bad discussions, fighting or arguing. It was a good conversation and then just a decision, to leave.”