Speaking to Spanish publication El Pais, the Spanish midfielder spoke candidly about the United boss, and his Red Devils team-mates
Ander Herrera has admitted Louis van Gaal 'told him off' for chasing the ball too much in his early days at Manchester United.
The Spaniard says playing in Van Gaal's possession-based system has made him a more patient player, but says he 'keeps his distance' with the Dutch coach.
"I keep my distance with Van Gaal, but he's a good guy with a strong character," said Herrera. "He believes we're all the same in the dressing room.
"Van Gaal loves possession and doesn't like to risk [losing] the ball. He wants long possessions and to keep the ball because he believes you create spaces staying in the right place, because the team have the quality to find you.
"At the beginning he used to tell me off because I always looked for the ball, I wanted to have it, and I must wait for it."
United have built a five-point cushion between themselves and the chasing pack, thanks in no small part to their skipper and talisman Wayne Rooney.
Despite missing a late penalty in yesterday's victory at Anfield, the England captain had four goals in his previous for Premier League outings.
Herrera says Rooney is one of the jokers in the United pack, and while he demands respect, the dressing room is less 'hierarchic' than it was when Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs were still playing.
He continued: "Rooney is outgoing and insults us in Spanish. I'd rather talk to him about football because he likes boxing and could try with me.
"Carrick's very serious, but suits another quote by (Marcelo) Bielsa (Herrera's boss at Athletic Bilbao): Leaders don't need to speak much, but you listen to them when they speak.
"Maybe [biggest joker] is Young but the Spanish speakers have more sense of humour. We always joke about clichés from our countries.
"There's a lot of respect for Rooney & Carrick, but De Gea says the dressing room used to be more hierarchic w/ Rio, Scholes, Giggs."
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