adminLOUIS van Gaal admits he has been “very bored or angry” during some Manchester United games this season.
The Old Trafford boss said he had “enjoyed” some matches during a campaign defined by the Dutchman’s possession-based tactics.
United are out of the Champions League and fifth in the Premier League.
Home supporters booed Van Gaal’s team off at half-time in last Saturday’s FA Cup tie against Sheffield United, with thousands leaving early.
Asked why many fans had gone before Wayne Rooney’s 93rd-minute penalty secured a 1-0 third-round win, Van Gaal replied: “’They are not thinking that we would score, I think, and maybe also because of the traffic.”
‘Van Gaal’s teams start slow… and they fade’
Van Gaal suggested United fans should be “happy” with their team’s current form, despite the home side not managing a shot on target until the 69th minute against their League One opponents.
Van Gaal refused to react to former United midfielder Paul Scholes, who said both the players and manager looked “bored” and there was “no spirit”.
But the 64-year-old later admitted: “There are matches that I have enjoyed. And there are also matches where I’m very bored or angry because we are not disorganising our opponent’s defence, but that is football.”
United travel to the Championship’s second-placed side Derby County in the fifth round.
‘I don’t believe in yelling from the sidelines’
Scholes is one of several ex-United players to be very critical of United’s style of play.“There’s nobody having a go at each other, there’s no smiling, there’s no entertainment,” the 11-time Premier League winner said. “I think even Van Gaal on the bench looks bored, but he’ll come out and say he’s happy.”
Van Gaal said he never discusses such comments with assistant manager Ryan Giggs – an ex team-mate of Scholes – and defended his absence from the touchline during matches.
“I’m not Sir Alex, as you know,” said Van Gaal. “Everybody is different and I don’t believe in yelling from the sidelines. I believe in communication during the week, during the preparation and I believe in my players who have to perform.
“A lot of managers are [yelling from the sidelines] but I doubt if they have real influence.” – BBC Sport
Online Reporter