Like him or loathe him, former Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal will rarely leave you without an opinion.
The former Red Devils boss announced earlier in the year that he had been battling prostate cancer and that leading the Netherlands to the World Cup would be his last job as a manager.
“You don’t die from prostate cancer, at least not in 90 percent of the cases,” he said (via sportingnews.com).
“It is usually other underlying diseases that kill you. But I had a pretty aggressive form … Then you have a lot of management to do in order to go through life.
“I’ve been through everything.
“I had 25 radiation treatments. Then I had to wait five or six months to see if it had done its job. It had.”
But with the Oranje’s submission to Argentina bringing a premature end to what would have been the final tournament of his career, the twinkle in the Dutch master’s eye has not gone out just yet.
He is dreaming of his next job.
“I’m retired again. But if [Portugal] call me, I’ll listen. That’s all I can say,” he told goal.com.
Portugal are managerless after having let Fernando Santos go at the end of the World Cup.
The Iberian side suffered a shock defeat at the hands of Morocco in the Quarter Finals.
Portugal would certainly be considered one of the favourites for the next World Cup in 2026, when most of the current squad will have reached their peak playing years.
Among them, United stars Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot, both of whom joined the club after Van Gaal had departed.
More Portugal internationals could join the Old Trafford fold soon, with goalkeeper Diogo Costa, winger Rafael Leao and forwards Joao Felix and Gonçalo Ramos all rumoured to be on United’s shopping list.
In 2026, Portugal will have:
-Diogo Costa (26)
-Diogo Dalot (26)
-Rúben Dias (29)
-António Silva (22)
-Nuno Mendes (23)
-João Palhinha (30)
-Matheus Nunes (27)
-Vitinha (26)
-Bruno Fernandes (31)
-Bernardo Silva (31)
-Rafael Leão (27)
-João Félix (26)
-Gonçalo Ramos (25)— Zach Lowy (@ZachLowy) December 13, 2022
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