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LONDON. – New manager Louis van Gaal can propel Manchester United back into English Premier League soccer contention after their dismal form of last season and excite the players again, former United skipper Bryan Robson said on Tuesday.
Robson, speaking a day before the Netherlands’ World Cup coach Van Gaal arrived in Manchester to take up his new post, also said that the lack of European football at Old Trafford could help the team back to the top.
“You could see Holland were very well organised in the World Cup and there was discipline. Hopefully, he can bring that to Manchester. I think he will,” Robson told BBC Sport.
“They can bounce back straight away. His CV is great. He’s got great experience with top clubs and top players.”
United finished a lowly seventh in the English Premier League last season – 22 points behind champions Manchester City – under former Everton boss David Moyes, who replaced long-standing manager Alex Ferguson.
“A lot of the players let themselves down (last season) and didn’t perform the way they had under Sir Alex,” said Robson, who spent 13 years at United and earned the nickname “Captain Marvel” for his driving performances in midfield.
“They will be up for the challenge and will be excited by the new coach.”
The lack of European football, while disappointing, could also be beneficial to United, who failed to qualify for either this season’s Champions League or Europa League, he said.
“The players get a bit more rest and you don’t get as many injuries,” he said. “That can also be a real advantage.”
Van Gaal arrives at United on a wave of hope and expectation following his Dutch team’s performance at the World Cup, where they finished third with the 62-year-old’s reputation greatly enhanced.
He was heavily criticised when he changed Dutch tactics and ditched the traditional attacking style on the eve of the Brazil tournament.
In a country obsessed with playing possession football, the decision to adopt a defensive approach, with emphasis on swift counter-attacks, was tantamount to heresy but Van Gaal was eventually proved right after getting his senior players to buy into his belief.
“He had everyone believing in the tactical changes and the fact it would work for us,” said Wesley Sneijder on the team’s return home this week. “Our success in the tournament was a lot about the coach.”
There were few detractors by the end of the World Cup as the Dutch battled their way to the semi-finals, finally being eliminated by Argentina on penalties.
He was also not scared to throw young players – like Memphis Depay and Jordy Clasie – into key World Cup games, highlighting his belief in youth.
In Brazil, Van Gaal made few references to his new job – he signed a three-year contract with United in May – but looked genuinely enthusiastic when he eventually spoke about his next assignment after last Saturday’s 3-0 win over Brazil in the third place playoff.
“It is an exciting challenge,” he told Dutch television.
It is a return to club football for Van Gaal for the first time since Bayern Munich sacked him in 2011.
Van Gaal has shown little of his hand yet with the pre-season signings of Ander Herrera from Athletic Bilbao and Luke Shaw from Southampton.
At Barcelona, more than decade ago, he was heavily criticised for creating a colony of Dutch players, but one of them says that is unlikely to happen at Old Trafford.
“There were seven players dominating the changing room, speaking Dutch and not moving out of our own bubble. It was a very unhealthy situation and I think Louis realised that. He won’t do it again,” Ronald de Boer, now an analyst on NOS television, predicted.
Meanwhile, United fans will be hoping for improvement after last season’s disappointing Premier League finish and lack of major silverware, but Rene Meulensteen, a former Old Trafford coach, insists Van Gaal will relish this challenge. – Reuters-Sky Sports.
“I don’t think it will faze Louis van Gaal at all in that respect, there are no worries there,” he told Sky Sports News. “He will only thrive on it to some extent.
“But you really notice it when you’re really getting into the routine, especially when you’re going into pre-season and you see the massive popularity of the club and brand, that’s what it is.
“To maintain that they have to get back up very, very quickly.”
Van Gaal has acquired a fiery reputation during his hugely successful managerial career and Meulensteen believes the players must accept it or face a swift exit from the club.
“He’s got his own management style, which has thrown up a few difficulties along the way wherever he’s been, Barcelona or Bayern Munich because of the way that he is, the way he puts himself in front of players,” he said.
“Players accept it or players sometimes don’t. If they don’t accept it, then yeah you probably have a problem.”
A seventh-place finish in the top tier underlined how far the club have slipped behind their main rivals and there is only a month before the opening home fixture against Swansea.
Meulensteen, who worked alongside Sir Alex Ferguson, admits Van Gaal will need time to build the club back into one of the major forces in English football.
“They’ve had Sir Alex Ferguson and they’ve had a disastrous season with David Moyes, now another one comes in, so that will take time,” he said.
“United at this moment in time, (will be) seen by the opposition (as) still a team that can be beaten unless proven otherwise.” -Reuters-Sky Sports.
Online Reporter