van Gaal endures early United misery
- adamhigginsuk
- Aug 27, 2014
- 3 min read
Discontent: van Gaal has had plenty to deal with in the early weeks of his Manchester United managerial career (Picture by Zimbio.com)
IF Louis van Gaal had endured a difficult start to his Old Trafford reign after two winless Premier League games, the humiliating League Cup exit to MK Dons reached another level entirely.
The new Manchester United manager could only watch on in disbelief as his much-changed team were comprehensively dismantled by the League One outfit.
United fans were buoyant following the confirmation of Angel Di Maria's £59.7 million arrival from Real Madrid before kick-off but that glimmer of optimism was completely shattered on an unforgettable night for both clubs, for vastly contrasting reasons.
On a historic night in front of a record attendance at the Stadium MK, United's young guns were put to the sword having produced the sort of woeful defensive display which has prompted a major tactical variation and widespread transfer speculation over potential arrivals.
The evident weaknesses and glaring errors only added to the issues that arose during the defeat to Swansea and draw with Sunderland, leaving van Gaal with plenty of problems and without a win three games into arguably the biggest job in English football.
The sheer ineptitude of most aspects of the display will be the most concerning factor for the Dutchman, who persisted with the 3-5-2 formation which was successfully implemented in pre-season but has drew criticism as a result of United’s underwhelming start.
In a damning post-match assessment, van Gaal pinpointed individual errors at ‘wrong moments’ as the main reason for a loss which ranks alongside the most chastening in the club’s existence.
The back-three of Jonny Evans, Michael Keane and Marnick Vermijl were given the run-around by goalscorers Will Grigg and Benik Afobe but were merely victims of the circumstances with their misunderstanding of a system which does not suit their approach.
With the returning Nick Powell and debutant Saidy Janko occupied in their unnatural midfield positions, their impact was minimal before being substituted prematurely while the much-maligned Anderson was scarcely involved having been handed a rare first-team opportunity.
Throughout a side boasting 10 changes from the Stadium of Light outing on Sunday, the lack of belief and inspiration, even from fringe players eager to make an impression, was palpable.
Stamping his own dictatorial style and restoring United to Europe’s top-table was van Gaal's remit when chosen by the club’s hierarchy to lead them forward after last season's disappointment.
However, after Karl Robinson's MK Dons made a mockery of United's Premier League status, fixing the eroded confidence which has belied on-field performances will be van Gaal's toughest challenge before the bridge of bringing immediate success can be crossed.
With the transfer window slamming shut in a few days' time, the 62-year-old will now be forced rather than tempted to strengthen a squad he has repeatedly described as ‘unbalanced’.
United's crest-fallen players left the pitch with an understandable degree of haste but there was no hurrying van Gaal, who took time to sign autographs for a small number of the 7,000 travelling supporters that endured yet another utterly miserable experience.
The huge fall at the second round hurdle means one less trophy to compete for this term which, in the absence of any European football, realistically leaves only the FA Cup, with van Gaal himself admitting ‘a miracle’ would be required for United to reclaim their top-flight supremacy.
Newly-promoted Burnley provide the next opposition and a stern test of United's undoubted ability to bounce back from significant adversity at Turf Moor on Saturday.
A debut for Di Maria should boost morale and inject much-needed quality but a repeat of the corresponding fixture in 2009 would leave van Gaal under intense pressure, three weeks into a campaign which was expected to be a marked improvement from the dark days of David Moyes.
Last updated: 27 August 2014 01:03am
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