So off went the Emperor in procession under his splendid canopy. Everyone in the streets and the windows said, “Oh, how fine are the Emperor’s new clothes! Don’t they fit him to perfection? And see his long train!” Nobody would confess that he couldn’t see anything, for that would prove him either unfit for his position, or a fool. No costume the Emperor had worn before was ever such a complete success. “But he hasn’t got anything on,” a little child said.—Hans Christian Andersen, 1837
Louis Van Gaal is now eight months into his Old Trafford reign and the question remains; have Manchester United improved under his stewardship?
Initially Van Gaal urged supporters to give him three months in the job before assessing his qualities and impact as manager. So far the jury is most definitely still out considering its verdict. The most critical—and, one could argue, the most difficult—in any football club is recruitment. David Moyes had to contend with the monumental task of following a huge personality in Ferguson, but more so, players not only signed for Manchester United the club, but they also signed to play for Sir Alex.
There has been much debate amongst fans and within the media over the past two years as to whether the Manchester United squad had been neglected by Ferguson in his latter days. His failure to address the issues of an ageing back line and a severe weakness in central midfield has been a considerable talking point.
Moyes was presented with the task of shaping the first Manchester United without Fergie in 26 years and needed to do so with limited transfer gravitas and with a new Chief Executive at the helm. David Gill had left in the same summer as Sir Alex Ferguson to take up a post on the UEFA Executive Committee. New Chief Edward Woodward had previously been in control of the club’s Commercial and Media operations from 2007 before becoming the Executive Vice Chairman in 2012. After Gill’s departure he was named the Chief Executive following a restructure of the club’s board.
Despite a high profile interest in Cesc Fabregas—then of Barcelona—and Tottenham’s Gareth Bale who subsequently went to Real Madrid for a world record fee, it felt like there were a lack of contacts at the top clubs and they struggled to get any deals across the line. The main transfer of summer 2013 was the signing of Marouane Fellaini, who signed on deadline day for a reported £27.5 million, despite rumours of a clause in his contract at previous club Everton which meant he could have left earlier in the summer for a much reduced fee.
Moyes’ other significant signing was in January of 2014 when playmaker Juan Mata joined from Chelsea FC. The diminutive Spaniard had excelled at the Stamford Bridge club under previous managers, but was sidelined by incoming coach Jose Mourinho and left for Manchester in search on regular football. Around this time it was announced that defensive stewalts Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand would not have their contracts renewed by the club and would be leaving at the end of the season.
Moyes was sacked on April 22nd after a ten month stay in charge. At the time of his departure United were in seventh place in the Premier League and thirteen points off of Champions League football with just four games remaining.
Louis Van Gaal inherited a post-Moyes squad that was still essentially still the same as the one that Sir Alex Ferguson left behind following his final championship-winning season. With Vidic and Ferdinand gone, what had looked an already unbalanced squad was now in need of some serious attention. The arrivals of Luke Shaw, Marcos Rojo, Angel Di Maria, Ander Herrera and Daley Blind for a combined £148.7m, plus the arrival of Radamel Falcao on loan from AS Monaco for a fee of around £20million, meant Van Gaal had already had more backing than David Moyes had seen in his first transfer window.
Despite all this, there were still frailties. The loss of defensive leaders, as well as the retired Ryan Giggs—who was now Van Gaal’s number two—meant that he was starting with a team made up of decent individuals but without a set pattern of play.
The Manchester United of the Ferguson era had generally played a variation of 4-4-2, with wingers, two forwards and solid back line. Van Gaal went with a 3-5-2 initially to accommodate Falcao, Van Persie and Rooney, but also as a subtle nod to the fact he had no quality full backs or a strong enough midfield.
His tactics have varied between a 4-4-1-1 with Fellaini being a default long ball option, and 3-5-2. This instability has led to disjointed performances. His use of Wayne Rooney in midfield has provided just one goal and zero assists, Robin Van Persie is not firing and Falcao is looking horrendously off the pace since his ACL injury fourteen months ago. The shining light has been the form of goalkeeper David De Gea, but there is only so long that Manchester United fans will accept their goalkeeper being the best player at the club.
The statistics don’t make for pleasant reading either for Van Gaal.
In the past three seasons after 21 Premier League Games:
2012/13 Ferguson – 52 points
2013/14 Moyes – 37 points
2014/15 Van Gaal – 37 points.
Given that Moyes was being castigated for this difference in performance, Van Gaal seems to be able to ride the storm and shout down his critics. As of February, Manchester United had made the second highest number of long passes in the Premier League at over 1,850. On February 10th following criticism from West Ham’s Sam Allardyce, Van Gaal produced ProZone fact sheets in a rant to reporters questioning his approach.
In recent times he has also shown his petulant side, not answering reporters’ questions or meeting such questions with sarcasm. This was especially evident when he was asked about Radamel Falcao’s return of four goals this season despite earning a reported £280,000 a week. When questioned Van Gaal replied; “He scored four goals and has three or four assists, so that is his contribution, he stimulates also the other players, so that’s also an aspect of the profession.” In reply to the reporter’s questioning his form, he said: ‘you are very happy to say that, I see that in your face.’
Van Gaal has dressing room support, but is this due to his track record as a coach instead of what is currently going on at the club? He is defending his style of play. He is saying they are making progress. Yet the recent displays of Di Maria, Luke Shaw and Ander Herrera would suggest that he simply cannot coach this current side to play a brand of football that is little more than functional. Falcao is looking like a player far removed from the striker that terrorised the Spanish La Liga for Atletico Madrid and the same can be said of Robin Van Persie who has managed just ten goals for Manchester United this term.
The rest of the season will tell if Louis Van Gaal can take United to the holy land of the Champions League. A resurgent Liverpool, Arsenal and Man City will provide stiff opposition for a top four place, but would this just cover up the fact that Van Gaal is not wearing elegant garments fit for a king, but is merely just a purveyor of the Emperor’s New Clothes?
