Former Manchester United midfielder Nemanja Matic has said the club was not as focused on “winning” as their rivals during his five-year spell at Old Trafford.
Matic, who plays for Lyon, faces a reunion with his former side in the Europa League quarterfinals on Thursday.
Speaking to the Athletic in an interview published on Wednesday, Matic reflected on his time at United, where he once finished second in the Premier League and played in Europa League, Super Cup and FA Cup finals without lifting a single trophy.
“We did our best every single year, the players, the coaches … But we didn’t win,” he said.
“If I compare how we did with United now, then we did great, but of course United cannot be happy finishing second. United need to be winning leagues. We gave it our best and sometimes we’d get criticised, but I didn’t see any major problems in the club. The organisation was very good, the conditions perfect.
“The difference I felt after Chelsea was that, at Chelsea, everything was about the result and winning trophies. That was the spirit in the whole club, even from the man who cuts the grass.
“Roman Abramovich would only ask us about results. At United, it was more commercial-minded. I started to think that after a couple of months in the club. I understand that our salary needs to be paid, but I felt that the results were not the focus like it was at Chelsea. I maybe did two commercial jobs at Chelsea, at United it was far more.
“I arrived at United with the anger to win trophies like I had at Chelsea, but step by step I started to feel that trophies were not the focus. Maybe I’m not right, but that was my feeling inside.”
United find themselves in a familiar predicament on Thursday. Failure to overcome Lyon across two legs will mean Ruben Amorim’s side will go without silverware this season, compiling the misery of their worst-ever Premier League campaign.
