The 28-year-old has scored 108 goals in 246 appearances for Arsenal since joining the club from Dutch side Feyenoord in 2004.
Van Persie said on his DVD 100 Goals RVP: “I’m so thankful I met him. When I was 20 he asked me, ‘Why are you not a top player yet?’
“I said ‘Because of this, this and this.’ He told me to think about the reasons why and a couple of years later asked me again, ‘Are you a top player?’
“I again said, ‘No, I don’t think so.’ And he said, ‘Why not? Think about it.’
“It was then I started to realise. He gave me a little bit of advice on certain things I was doing.
“He told me to think more about my actions. It was a conversation which lasted a year. Every couple of weeks he would refer to that conversation we had.
“He was giving me proof as well so I could go on and find my answer and I was finding answers all the time. He helped me big time.”
