Jaap Stam has warned Sir Jim Ratcliffe that he would be losing Manchester United’s history by knocking down Old Trafford, but has backed the billionaire to turn the corner after his controversial start overseeing matters at the club.

In an exclusive interview with Makthavare.se, the three-time Premier League champion, who also lifted the first treble in English football under Sir Alex Ferguson in 1999, also spoke of his sadness to see Marcus Rashford leave his former club.

The Dutchman also analysed the situation with United’s transfer activity with regards to incoming players and what Ruben Amorim needs in the next window, as well as the situation ex-Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson finds himself in at Ajax.

Read the full interview below.

It’s sad to see Marcus Rashford in an Aston Villa shirt — he is such a talented player with all the credentials to be a top forward

It’s sad to see Marcus Rashford in an Aston Villa shirt because I thought he would be a very important player for Manchester United and stay for a very long time.

He is such a talented player and has all the credentials to be a top forward, he is creative, he can score goals, he can be a real danger.

For some reason it wasn’t working at United and you have to wonder if it’s because of the managers, is it because of him, he has decided that he wanted to go to Aston Villa and that’s a shame.

He’s gone to Aston Villa and there is still pressure there, he has to perform under a new manager and it won’t be easy. Unai Emery is a great manager and his style of play might suit Rashford.

But there’s a lot of competition in that squad as well. I would’ve liked to see him have a big impact at United having come through the academy and shown glimpses of his ability, but it turned out to be too hard for him to perform.

You need to give everything, you need to be willing to sacrifice a lot of things to perform and to eventually become a very important player for a club like Manchester United and maybe he wasn’t willing to do that.

Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho might feel like he now has freedom away from Manchester United

Maybe Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho will feel like they have more freedom and less pressure at other clubs, but they are still playing under demanding managers and will have to perform well and help their teams get results.

It might feel like freedom at the beginning because it’s a new situation and a fresh start, but if they are not performing, they won’t be playing, and the situation will repeat itself at a new club.

For Rashford, if he doesn’t perform at Aston Villa who are not a club at the same standard of United when it comes to history, it will feel even more difficult when it comes to thinking about his next steps.

I do wish him the best, sometimes a different environment can help a player get back to their best, but it is a shame he left Manchester United.

Marcus Rashford cannot be considered a legend at Manchester United

For me, Marcus Rashford cannot be considered a legend at Manchester United, I think he left too soon to be considered as one.

When you look at all his seasons at the club and for how many he performed at his best, he had one season under Erik ten Hag in which they changed the style of play and he scored a lot of goals and was a danger to every defence he faced.

He got a new contract and everybody expected his form to carry on, but to be considered a true United legend you have to show that form for seven, eight or nine seasons.

That is the level you need to reach to be considered a legend.

I hope Manchester United have made the right choice in Patrick Dorgu

I saw Patrick Dorgu play in Italy, but you never know how things are going to work out when a player joins a club like Manchester United in the Premier League, it’s a totally different situation.

The intensity is much higher, physicality is much higher, the individual quality that you’re facing in general are a lot better as well. But United must have followed him for a longer period of time.

I cannot believe that they brought him in after seeing him for a couple of games. They must have seen his stats, how he is as a player, his physicality, his pace and the intensity that he brings.

Hopefully they make the right choice by doing so. Hopefully he can grow into the team, get more confidence, get more acquainted with the Premier League and then be important for the side in his own position.

Everyone was surprised to see Patrick Dorgu on the right when he was signed as a left-back

I was surprised to see Patrick Dorgu on the right, I think it was a surprise for everyone. He has played as a wing back on the left and right in the past, but he is far more confident in his normal position.

Being a left footer on the right hand side, it becomes difficult to cross the ball and then you look at Rasmus Højlund and the lack of balls that go into him. You want to get the best out of your players and playing Dorgu on the right doesn’t do that.

Lisandro Martinez injury remains an opportunity for Leny Yoro to show how good he can be

Lisandro Martinez being injured could work out well for Leny Yoro and that’s just how football works sometimes.

He will want to play and get minutes and now he will get more opportunities and more experience. That will make him a better player.

Having said that, it’s a shame to see Martinez injured because I like him as a defender, although everyone has had their struggles in the new system I think he will be an important player for the club again when he is fit.

Manchester United youngsters should get advice from Luke Littler

I’ve been so impressed with how Luke Littler has been performing, he is doing such an amazing job at a young age and I spoke to him at Old Trafford last season.

I told him how impressive it was that he can still perform with all the noise and the shouting behind him at tournaments, it’s so hard to have that concentration and that focus.

I think it’s different for certain personalities in how you approach certain situations and how you deal with that, Luke’s been doing a great job at that.

For young footballers who are going from the academy to the first team at a big club it can be very difficult, you have to think about all the social media attention and pressure put on these players.

I think it would be good for these young players to talk to Luke about his experience and how he handles high pressure situations. I have seen players in the past who go from the academy to the first team and then they seem to struggle.

It’s so important to have people within the club who can help that transition and make it easier for those young people to handle it and reach their potential.

Rasmus Hojlund is being held back by Manchester United’s style

I think that it’s the style of play that is holding Rasmus Holjund back. We don’t know how the manager is trying to use him in matches and I think he doesn’t get a lot of chances to touch the ball and get into games.

It becomes a very difficult situation for a striker because you don’t see crosses coming into the box and the emphasis should be on creating chances for him. If you don’t get chances you can’t prove how good a striker you are.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has a plan – now he needs to make it a reality

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has stepped in and made a lot of changes inside the club when it comes to staff, he wants to save money and potentially invest that into the team to eventually become the best club in the UK again for both the men and the women.

Now it’s about how to make that a reality and it’s about getting the right people in, the right players in and working your way back to that.

The stadium and facilities need to be right and then you need the individual players to do the job on the pitch. These things take time.

Manchester United would lose history if they knock Old Trafford down

I would be very sad to see Old Trafford go. There is so much history there and so many iconic moments and players and trophies that were celebrated there.

It’s an iconic stadium that all the fans love. But I do understand that in the modern game it’s all about facilities and sometimes you do need a change.

It can be about bringing in new sponsors and using the money for different events to bring in revenue so I do understand the thought process.

Having said that if Old Trafford is knocked down it would be a shame because you lose a lot of history.

Ruben Amorim needs to make a decision regarding Luke Shaw 

Football clubs need to always look forward. You have to move forward with a team you can trust and players that are going to be available and perform week in and week out.

I like Luke Shaw as a player, he has a lot of ability, but he is injured so often that as a manager you need to make a choice when it comes to recruitment and build a team that are fit the majority of the time and can handle the load that comes with intense football.

I don’t want to be disrespectful to Shaw but the club has to make choices about what is right going forward and that might be to look at a team without him.

Jeremie Frimpong would be a great fit for Manchester United

Jeremie Frimpong can play as a right-wing back having also played as a right winger and a right back. He has pace and is very direct and can score goals as well as create chances for his team-mates.

I think he would be a very interesting player for Manchester United to look at, he would fit the style of play on the right hand side, the only issue might be if the club don’t want to continue bringing in Dutch players going forward.

But he has a lot of quality and is doing so well in a tough division in Germany, I think he would be a great fit for the system at United.

I still back Jordan Henderson despite the bad feeling in front of the media at Ajax

Jordan Henderson has a good personality and so much experience, I think that if he wanted to leave Ajax he would’ve gone about it in the right way in speaking to the board.

The press asked him details about his links to Monaco and whether he wanted to give up the captaincy and I think that the media in Holland like to make a fuss out of things. I back the player on this occasion.