Guardian Interview - Louis van Gaal: ‘I thought Manchester United could buy every player'
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He is a fraud. I don't have much more respect for him than Woodward.
He was once a great manager, but he wasn't here
He absolutely would not come back here, certainly not while the Glazers and Ed are still in charge.
I'm not emotionally invested into Rooney like the average United supporter, but I really liked Rooney when playing for Van Gaal. Yes, physically he was no longer capable enough to be a lethal striker in the PL. But this was a footballer growing up, getting responsibility, learning to think for the team, learning different positions. It was an interesting process with such a fantastic player. Wouldn't be surprised if for Rooney it was the time in his career he learned the most.
A competent DoF, combined with a organisation, that puts football in prior. Seems quite comprehensible. The "old mens club" with a lack of competence in football as a brake for the change also.
Saw an interview with Rooney when he discussed that incident and going up to LvGs office first time in the morning after the story broke on his own iniative expecting a proper rollicking. And Van Gaal burst out in laughter and thought it was hilarious. Its difficult not to like LvG as a person.
He’s spot on about the lack of structure and philosophy but that’s why he got the job, if we had those things he wouldn’t have been recruited.
Sadly he still hasn’t realised that tactically he was outdated by time he arrived at Utd and that the game had moved on.
Also thinks it’s bit late to start saying Rooney was over the hill at this stage, no one made him say my Captain always plays. He made that decision, it was wrong and simply no excuse.
Sadly he still hasn’t realised that tactically he was outdated by time he arrived at Utd and that the game had moved on.
Also thinks it’s bit late to start saying Rooney was over the hill at this stage, no one made him say my Captain always plays. He made that decision, it was wrong and simply no excuse.
Se he's a fraud because he managed a club where all managers failed in the last 6 years?
Jesus.
Did you read that quote properly?
He was the best manager we had tactically since Fergie. We were on the right direction post Moyes, not everyone played the way the play now back then and we had a progressive style. The implementation wasnt good enough. Instead of changing our structure, we sacked van Gaal and hired a dinosaurier in Jose, while keeping everything the same. Thats why we are now years behind everyone else.
Good interview, nice to see him tell the truth about Woodward. Need Jose to do that too, build up pressure on the Glazers goon.
I dont agree on this. I thought the most interesting part of the interview is when he discussed why we play liked we did and why it didnt work. Add to that with the analysis of City and Liverpools strengths and weaknesses, which are so spot on as you can be. It does not sound like someone that is tactically outdated. Quite the opposite. He failed miserably in the transfer market, and even if he tries to shift the blame to the organisation of the club for this, it is what eventually led to his downfall.
LvG as a technical director would be a bold move. It didnt really work out for him at Ajax though when he tried to micromanage the manager/head coach so his history with the position isnt great.
This insanity needs to stop. Winning 1 FA Cup in 2 years, while boring us to death is what I remember him for.
You sir, are a glutton for punishment. You enjoyed the borefest?
Here's a reminder of what actually took place during our matches, under him:
I knew this would be referenced cause I saw that Rooney comment myself.
That's Rooney's side of the story, doesn't sound like LVG was very happy with him here though does it?
I dont agree with football pass by anyone, or the notion that a manager is outdated. It's such a cop out to think lvg and jose are outdated and their method cant work. It might not work within the currect circumstances but football is football, what's outdated today is tomorrow's new system. Tiki taka isn't born out of nowhere, the basic principles has been around since johan cryff, things goes in cycle.
The counter to tiki taka turns out to be some outdated system modified. Just because it doesnt work with us doesnt mean their method wont work somewhere else. Mahbe it's our culture and vision that's outdated.
I did.
I take from it that he wanted him as long ago as 7 years previous.
Why would he want him in 2007 but not in 2014 when he had developed to the point of being the best wide attacker in Europe?
Woody is as usually spouting too much nonsense around.
'We can do things in the transfer market other clubs can only dream of. Watch this space'
'We can do things in the transfer market other clubs can only dream of. Watch this space'
He finished 5th in a much weaker league,
playing negative, out dated and quite simple football. He was terrible in the transfer market and left behind a mess, LVG, the board, Moyes and Jose have all played the part in where we are today and it’s why we are so far behind.
Dof is also human. The odds of us hiring a wrong dof is as big as a good one.
5 years ago everyone here would have no complain on lvg being our dof. Saf certainly made the best dof in our eyes, but his decision of hiring moyes shows that dof is far from foolproof
Then why follow it up by saying he had others on the list?
Sounds to me as if he didn't want him but was okay with it when he signed.
I dont think Rooney is making that up tbf. And Van Gaal is not referring to that particular incident either. What he says does indicate that there were some more disturbing problems with Rooney off the pitch though. There were always rumours of his drinking affecting him more and more. But in general he gives a quite decent opinion about Rooney I think. Maybe better than he deserves.
No, he said Di Maria was his choice 7 years ago when he managed another team. He said at United he had other players on his list over Di Maria.
Interesting that he sees the more conservative liverpool style this year and klopp easing up on the pressing for tactical reason. I always saw it as easing up because his players were too tired and never won anything
Think this interview is further evidence a lot of blame can be placed at Woodward and Judge's door. Especially the recruitment structure.
'He gave youth a chance' only because of him and the coaching staff were running our first team squad into the ground with bizarre training regimes thus culminating in a ever increasing amount of players out sidelined.Raymond Verheijen was on the mark with his criticisms of Loius there.
Our fitness issues slightly improved under Jose,to be fair to the miserable one.
His transfer work was blooming awful.
Our fitness issues slightly improved under Jose,to be fair to the miserable one.
You've got to be joking ?
His transfer work was blooming awful.
It was a joke...
Good read. He speaks a lot of sense there.
Yes, I was joking.
If one reads the rest of the interview its pretty obvious that he wanted multiple creative players in, not just Di Maria, whose signing he clearly states he was satisfied with. With the covenant that you never know how a player adapts to a new enviroment. He is not saying that he knew that Di Maria would not adapt.Then why follow it up by saying he had others on the list?
Sounds to me as if he didn't want him but was okay with it when he signed.
Well drinking and being generally unfit is part of the problem. He could well have laughed about the boxing thing but drinking and being unfit ties into the overall problem he had with him.
That makes no sense.
As I say he was a better player in 2014 than in 2007 so why wouldn't he want him?
No, he said two things. That he was satisfied with Di Maria's purchase because he filled a need and that he had other players on his list. We have an idea about these players, iirc it was Robben and Muller but these players play for a rich club that had no reason to sell them and they weren't interested in joining us either.
Worrying that our transfer policy is so dependent on Woodward and Judge. Really can't see any light at the end of the tunnel.
That was the 'old head' management ploy of LvG, to keep Rooney on his side! At that time Rooney would have been a 'loose cannon' in the dressing room as far as LvG was concerned, so better to have him on his side, its hard to be part of the management (team captain) and lead a workers revolt. It also allowed LvG to be in a position to ask Rooney to play in certain roles and on occasions 'rest' him... its for the good of the team Wayne, and as captain I want your support... you could imagine Louis taking that line.
All these post manager interviews all have the same theme. It’s never their fault, like at all. Everyone else was to blame with him, Jose and Moyes.
It would be refreshing to here “yeah I actually got that wrong” for once.
It would be refreshing to here “yeah I actually got that wrong” for once.
Then why follow it up by saying he had others on the list?
Sounds to me as if he didn't want him but was okay with it when he signed.
I'm sure he had other targets as well in mind, but it kind of tarnishes the rhetoric that it was all Ed and a "galactico" signing when he was aware of him 7 years previous.
I tend to agree with him, I think we would be much better off now had we continued with the process and then hired a manager which fit in as continuation of the player style etc.
We really didn't have the players when he was there, still think he was outdated, but I think the process would have paid off had we added a couple of good creative and attacking players and not had to rely on Rooney
Also think the evolution of Martial and Rashford would have been alot better too, on top of that Blind
Then why follow it up by saying he had others on the list?
Sounds to me as if he didn't want him but was okay with it when he signed.
Because Di Maria wasn't a successful signing, he would be telling everyone that he is the one who brought Di Maria if it was a success. Here, he just says that he was satisfied but that he had other players on his list.
I think he was a good coach at United and did a lot more good compared to harm, but part of his downfall was his inability to adapt or get along with other top players. The young players loved him, and tbf to him, if you look at the team we played with most of the time in 2015/16, winning an FA Cup and being level on points with 4th is not a bad job at all. The problem was that he was awful in the transfer market and couldn't bring in top, experienced players who could play his style to a high level.
Say what you want about him, but finishing 4th one season, 5th the other but winning the FA Cup and having a good record in big games when regularly we were basically starting 18 year old Rashford, 19/20 year old Martial, Lingard in his first real season, young being a regular, Smalling and Blind being our CB pairing (and having one of the best defensive records if not the best over those 2 years), and so on. Of all the post Sir Alex managers, I'd say he got the most out of what he used, it's just that he failed to get the better players into the side to increase the overall level of play.
Say what you want about him, but finishing 4th one season, 5th the other but winning the FA Cup and having a good record in big games when regularly we were basically starting 18 year old Rashford, 19/20 year old Martial, Lingard in his first real season, young being a regular, Smalling and Blind being our CB pairing (and having one of the best defensive records if not the best over those 2 years), and so on. Of all the post Sir Alex managers, I'd say he got the most out of what he used, it's just that he failed to get the better players into the side to increase the overall level of play.
Agree but let's be frank, LvG has always been a stubborn mule and the structure of our club (i.e. prioritisation of commercial interests) practically demands it.