Schneiderlin 'lost the joy of football' at Manchester United

Morgan Schneiderlin says a difficult spell at Manchester United saw him fall out of love with football.

The France international midfielder was signed from Southampton by Louis van Gaal in July 2015 for a reported £27million fee, but he failed to make a significant impact at Old Trafford.

Schneiderlin's opportunities in the first team were further restricted when Jose Mourinho took charge last year and he only managed 11 minutes of football in the Premier League this season before joining Everton in January.

The 27-year-old says it was a difficult time for him but feels liberated working with Ronald Koeman - his manager at Southampton - once more.

"I did lose my joy of football a little bit because when you don't play, you don't play with freedom and everything is very hard," said Schneiderlin, who scored Everton's second goal in their 3-0 win over West Brom last Saturday.

"Since I've come here the manager knows what I'm all about. He placed confidence in me in the past and he has done so again. It's a joy to work with him every day.

| @SchneiderlinMo4 takes time out to answer a selection of questions from the Club's Junior Fans' Forum. Take it away, Morgan... pic.twitter.com/EfJvptcnje

— Everton (@Everton) March 13, 2017

"He knows how I want to play, he knows my strength and it's a case of him giving the best product, if I can say, to be the best player I can.

"I'm very happy to find this joy of football again and hopefully it will carry on for me."