Moyes: United have lost their traditions

Cape Town - Sunderland manager David Moyes has taken a veiled swipe at former employers Manchester United, claiming the Red Devils have given up the traditions that set them apart.

The Scotsman, who was famously labelled the 'Chosen One' after being named as Sir Alex Ferguson's successor in 2013, was at the Old Trafford helm for just 10 months before being sacked by the club.

Since then, United have spent big in the transfer market in a bid to overhaul their squad, while former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho was appointed ahead of the 2016/17 campaign following the departure of Louis van Gaal.

"Manchester United was a club with a tradition where they tended to pick British managers. That tradition has now gone," Moyes told reporters.

"They were a football club who enjoyed traditions with the way they spent.

"They didn't try to compete with all the other clubs. They did what they thought was the right thing to do and spent the right way. I can say that's gone.

"There have been a few changes at Manchester United -- but that's the way they have chosen to go."

Moyes will take his Sunderland side to Old Trafford on Boxing Day - the first time he will come up against the Red Devils since departing the club in April 2014.

And the Scotsman has suggested he was not afforded enough time in the United hot seat, while also claiming that even Mourinho would have found it difficult to follow in the footsteps of Sir Alex Ferguson.

"Most people, looking back at it -- and me myself -- would say that whoever took over from Sir Alex wouldn't have had an easy ride, whether it was Jose, Carlo Ancelotti, Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola or David Moyes," Moyes added.

"It would have been a difficult job for whoever took over."