Wife of exiled Valdes slams United

The Premier League club held its annual dinner for Unicef on Sunday and many United players were in attendance, but Valdes, who is out of favour with boss Louis van Gaal, was not on the guest list.

The 33-year-old's wife Yolanda Cardona took to Instagram to criticise the club for their conduct.

Underneath a picture taken at the event of Juan Mata, Marco Rojo, Sergio Romero, David De Gea, Ander Herrera and their partners, she wrote: "Do not invite to my husband @vicvaldes1 to be part of the #united4unicef , its the last thing you don't expect from one of the biggest club as @manchesterunited. A Charity event, its always a Charity event."

United said former Barcelona star Valdes was not invited because he is no longer a member of the first-team squad.

Valdes signed for United on an 18-month contract in January, but he has only played two games for the club.

Van Gaal told the three-time Champions League winner he was free to leave the club in the close-season after the United boss accused him of refusing to play for the Under-21 side.

In response, the 33-year-old posted a picture on Twitter that reminded supporters he had played for the Under-21s on three occasions last year. Alongside the picture, Valdes wrote: ".....? #respect."

Valdes, who played under van Gaal during the Dutchman's second spell at Barcelona, has not been given a squad number for United this year and was also left out of the United squad list that was submitted to the Premier League after the transfer window closed.