What can we learn from Louis van Gaal?

[JollyGreen]

KARMA

[giulio2010]

Every supporter have the right to show some enthusiasm about new buying and new coach, but just a little note, Louis van Gaal played for penaltys all 3 games after the group stage and only by an extreme luck he managed to avoid the same fate against Mexico..
Good luck with him..

[Iron]

We're about to have a manager with a room full of trophies who just has taken the Netherlands to the World Cup semi-finals (in stark contrast to his predecessor, who has, I think, won nothing, ever). I'd say we won't need too much luck!

Good luck with him..

[LeTiss]

The one concern I'd have if I was a United fan, is the lack of goals in the later stages.

Moyes was heavily criticised for being too negative, yet LVG couldn't mastermind a goal in 120 minutes vs Argentina, or 120 minutes vs Costa Rica and it took them 89 minutes to break down Mexico

[Euler]

Pre season optimism in full effect!

Should be another interesting season. Chelsea have quietly built a team that will challenge for the title and dumped Luiz for what looks like an amazing £50m. Man City will be Man City again and may win if they are lucky and can keep players happy. Liverpool should be renamed Southampton B and I suspect will not have a season like last year. Man Utd are still in flux. Arsenal will end up fourth or fifth.

Everybody else will battle it out to stay in the division.

[Iron]

Le Tiss

True - I can understand the lack of goals against Mexico and Argentina as you open yourself to counter attack if you play too aggressively against a top side, but it's surprising they didn't manage to put one past Costa Rica. That said, at least they managed to avoid conceding many goals, which is more than can be said for United under Moyes. Plus, you never saw Moyes high fiving his players - instead, there seemed to be mutual contempt!

[Iron]

Scholes on VG:

“Van Gaal is not afraid of big decisions, which he showed by bringing on the Newcastle keeper Tim Krul for the Dutch No1 Jasper Cillessen for the penalty shootout against Costa Rica,” he added.

“Krul had only saved two out of last 20 penalties with Newcastle. The evidence did not seem to be there for that big a decision. But whatever Louis van Gaal does, seems to work.

"He substituted his captain, Robin van Persie, when Holland were 1-0 down to Mexico, and they came back to win. He seems to have, and hopefully can work this magic on United next year.”

http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2896/pre ... nited-says

[fortfield]

True, although it's curious that this isn't a universal across sport. For example, if a snooker player hits a ball he didn't aim for, he'll often own up to the referee. I also remember watching a top flight table tennis game where a player thought his opponent may have committed a foul, and asked the player whether he did so. In football, there's no way a player would trust a fellow player to be truthful in a competitive fixture!

Jeff

Agree, but cheating unfortunately is part of the sport and every team will do it to some degree.

Theres a contradiction in your post Jeff, you say cheating is not universal (citing snooker as an eg) but then use the word "often", suggesting that sometimes there is honesty in snooker and other times not. Snooker players would cheat as often as football players, there is no specific "cheat"gene designated to a football player than other sports. The reasons why its not so prevalent is down to a few factors, there's less physical contact and its slower for a start. Still goes on though, Stephen Lee cheated the game with his match fixing.

[giulio2010]

I can't wait to see the next airplane flying over old trafford saying Van Gaal NOT a Genius!!!

[fortfield]

Scholes on VG:

“Van Gaal is not afraid of big decisions, which he showed by bringing on the Newcastle keeper Tim Krul for the Dutch No1 Jasper Cillessen for the penalty shootout against Costa Rica,” he added.

“Krul had only saved two out of last 20 penalties with Newcastle. The evidence did not seem to be there for that big a decision. But whatever Louis van Gaal does, seems to work.

"He substituted his captain, Robin van Persie, when Holland were 1-0 down to Mexico, and they came back to win. He seems to have, and hopefully can work this magic on United next year.”

http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2896/pre ... nited-says

Scholes is currently still on the Man U backstaff so i wouldnt expect him to say anything critical

[Iron]

Fortfield -

I was merely making the point that, whereas dishonest play is common in football, there seems to be a more gentlemanly culture in certain other sports. Perhaps I could have expressed myself better, but I wasn't arguing that every football player is a diver and snooker players never cheat. Just a general observation.

Jeff

[Iron]

Not for long!

'Scholes expects to play no part in the United coaching set-up next season – especially after he said of the club’s now omniscient chief executive: “Edward Woodward has an awful lot to prove this time that he’s good enough at his job. He has to bring the players in that the new manager wants. It’s obvious that last year he didn’t manage to do that. If he doesn’t, we are not going to get anywhere near the top.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/footba ... ength.html

He's also criticised Wayne Rooney's pay deal and said that Rooney is past his peak, so I think we can safely say that Scholes isn't afraid of speaking his mind.

Scholes is currently still on the Man U backstaff so i wouldnt expect him to say anything critical

[superfrank]

LVG is getting on a bit and his best years are probably behind him... like Roy Hodgson's!!!

title is surely Chelsea's to lose.

[Iron]

On the contrary, the guy isn't senile - he's merely more experienced than when he won his previous trophies.

I think one of the biggest challenges Moyes had was getting his players to believe in him, given that he'd never won anything. LVG will have no such problem.

Next season will be very interesting. It will be great if LVG did what Fergie did so many times, and got United's army of detractors and nay sayers to eat humble pie!

As for Chelsea, in the immortal words of Kevin Keegan, 'I'd love it if we could beat them. Love it.'

LVG is getting on a bit and his best years are probably behind him... like Roy Hodgson's!!!

title is surely Chelsea's to lose.

[fortfield]

Not for long!

'Scholes expects to play no part in the United coaching set-up next season – especially after he said of the club’s now omniscient chief executive: “Edward Woodward has an awful lot to prove this time that he’s good enough at his job. He has to bring the players in that the new manager wants. It’s obvious that last year he didn’t manage to do that. If he doesn’t, we are not going to get anywhere near the top.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/footba ... ength.html

That article is 6 weeks old, Van Gaal had been Man U manager all of 4 days. Scholes is still there ,currently on tour with the team in America http://www.manutd.com/en/Tour-2014/Tour ... tates.aspx#
if he is part of pre season i would expect him to be there for a while yet