Aitor Karanka said he feels he has already learned from Louis van Gaal as he prepares to take his Middlesbrough side to Manchester United in the Capital One Cup on Wednesday.
Karanka took charge of Championship side Boro in 2013 after having spent three years as Jose Mourinho's assistant at Real Madrid, and he said the current Chelsea boss -- with whom he retains regular contact -- bears the Dutchman's influence.
Van Gaal has previously said he "educated [Mourinho] a little" while the Portuguese was working as his assistant at Barcelona from 1997 to 2000, and former Madrid defender Karanka said he had taken on the lessons as a result.
"I played against Van Gaal's team when he was at Barcelona and Jose was his assistant," Karanka, who also played for Athletic Bilbao, said.
"He's an interesting coach and he's particularly interesting for me because I have learned with Jose and Jose learned from Van Gaal. I took the lessons from Jose so I feel I have learned from Van Gaal too."
Karanka said he was determined that his side -- currently fourth in the Championship -- should deliver a good performance in the fourth-round tie at Old Trafford.
"I'm really proud of them and hopefully we can show them a good performance," he added. "The game against Manchester United is special. The players don't need extra motivation because to play against United is motivation enough. Everyone wants to play."
Van Gaal, meanwhile, said Karanka -- who led Boro to the Championship playoff final last season -- appeared to have learned from Mourinho during the pair's time at the Bernabeu.
"I know him as a player, of course, and he was the assistant of Jose Mourinho, so I think he was able to learn the profession from him," Van Gaal told reporters.
"He lets his team play in a very organised way and I see also that he loves the creative players. It will be a tough match.
"I think Middlesbrough are a good playing side. They want to play football, that is also a benefit for us I think. You can also see teams with another play style and that is more difficult for us, but we can play football against them."