FOOTBALL:-LVG AT IT AGAIN......... Louis Van Gaals complaining cant hide the flaws in his Manchester United team In-depth: Louis van Gaal complained every aspect of a match is against us after Cambridge deservedly earned a FA Cup fourth-round replay at Old Trafford. WHAT HAPPENED? A determined and impressive display from Cambridge United earned them a 0-0 draw against Manchester United at the Abbey Stadium in the FA Cup fourth round, meaning a lucrative replay at Old Trafford but also an evening that will go down in the clubs history. WHAT DID VAN GAAL SAY? Every aspect of a match is against us. We have to come here, the pitch is not so good, but that can influence also that you play in another playing style. The opponents are always giving a lot more than normal. And defending is always easier than attacking. Then you have seen the referee (Chris Foy). Its always the same. Everywhere I have coached these games - and I have coached them also with other clubs - its always the same. We made the same error as against Yeovil Town and against QPR, that we played in the same playing style as the opponent and that we dont have to do. It was a pity we had to wait again till half-time, but I the second half I was pleased. We didnt score and I have to give also the credit to this club, of course, because Cambridge United played very well, very well organised, with the heart. They have fought till the end. We are still in the cup and thats the most important thing. Ive seen lots of times big clubs losing against such opponents. I know the statistics of our former performances. You could see we create more chances (playing 4-4-2). (But) it is not only the system. It is also the performance of the system. It is not so easy to change the system or something. That is not the solution. WHAT DID CAMBRIDGE MANAGER RICHARD MONEY SAY? On whether he thinks Cambridge can go to Old Trafford and win: No. I dont, but you never know. Weve said in the dressing room youre going to Old Trafford. Who cares what happens? Just go and enjoy it, soak it in. Whatever happens, happens. (It is) difficult to put into words just how proud we are. When you get back in the dressing room and recover, you just suddenly start to think about what it means to so many people. This club has been in the doldrums for 10 years, out of the Football League, and suddenly here we are taking everybody back to Old Trafford. Its incredible. WHAT DID THE MEDIA SAY? Matt Barlow, the Daily Mail: Van Gaal grumbled that the world was against him: poor pitches, poor referees. I mean, even teams from League Two try when Manchester United are in town. It is most unfair, but he is in the draw for the fifth round and should win the replay, albeit a funny old game. Matthew Dunn, Daily Express: The Manchester United manager may have got his English vernacular muddled in the run-up to the game, but on a cold night on the Fens it was his players who fluffed their lines, as Cambridge more than held their own against a team 76 places above them in the league. Daniel Taylor, the Guardian: Manchester United had enough of the ball in the last half an hour to think they could have avoided a replay. Yet it had been another scruffy display from Louis van Gaal’s players and it was perplexing to see how difficult they found it to demonstrate the gulf in quality against the team 75 places below them in the order of English football. EXPERT VIEW:- Van Gaals complaining about pitches and referees is rather tedious. Not only does it detract from a terrific and courageous display from Cambridge, it distracts from another poor performance from his side. For all the whining about formations and injuries, the bottom line was that judging on the football alone, it was impossible to tell which club was mid-table in League Two and which has aspirations to be the biggest in the world.
Posted on: Sat, 24 Jan 2015 12:41:28 +0000
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