United striker: he told me he’d stay for another three yearsVan Persie admits his form has not been good enough

Robin van Persie said he was surprised by Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure from Manchester United and is not satisfied with his performances under Louis van Gaal.

In September, Van Persie’s former United team-mate Rio Ferdinand stated Ferguson’s decision to retire after 27 years at Old Trafford “took the wind out of everyone’s sails” but “the person it hit more than anyone was Robin”.

Speaking to Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant on Friday, Van Persie said he had been shocked by the departure of the man who persuaded him to leave Arsenal in August 2012.

“Rio is a great guy. He talks a lot but there is some truth in that,” he said. “My decision to come to Manchester was partly because of the presence of Ferguson, or excuse me, Sir Alex. And he told me he’d stay for another three years. I enjoyed his approach.

“We were once 18 points clear of City but we lost at home 2-1. We were still 15 points ahead but he was furious. Then I realised: he’s a winner.”

Van Persie has struggled to replicate the form that saw him finish his debut season in Manchester as the Premier League’s top scorer with 26 goals as United won their 20th title.

An injury-hit campaign under David Moyes saw Van Persie find the net only 12 times in the league, while he has managed three from nine appearances under compatriot Van Gaal.

“Three goals in nine games is not enough,” the 31-year-old said. “Against Chelsea I had a nice chance and I had three options: chip it, go round the keeper or just [shoot] straight at the goal. I chose the last and safest. If I wouldn’t have thought it over I would just chip it. I just have to trust again in my intuition.”

Despite United recording their worst start to a season since 1986 under the former Holland coach, Van Persie has faith that they can turn things around and revealed some. “We train more and more intensely than in previous years. We have to get used to that.”

Van Persie also revealed he has discussed recent criticism of his performances by the BBC and BT Sport pundit Robbie Savage with the former Wales midfielder.

“My kids go to the same school as Robbie Savage, a great lad,” he said. “I once asked him why he was so harsh in his judgments. He told me it had to do with the competition in the media landscape, between television stations. He admitted to sometimes judging harder than is reasonable but also that he has a mortgage to pay.”