Soccer

Louis van Gaal not daunted by early setbacks

The Dutchman chose Man Utd over Spurs and has no regrets on that issue

Louis van Gaal addresses the audience after receiving a lifetime achievement award during the Dutch Footballer of the Year 2014 Gala in Hilversum. Photograph: Bas Czerwinski/EPA
Louis van Gaal addresses the audience after receiving a lifetime achievement award during the Dutch Footballer of the Year 2014 Gala in Hilversum. Photograph: Bas Czerwinski/EPA
Wed Sept 03 2014 - 10:28

Louis van Gaal insists he has no regrets over taking the manager’s job at Manchester United despite the building pressure after a poor start to the season.

The Dutchman was thought to be on his way to Tottenham early in the summer but chose to move to Old Trafford where he has yet to win a competitive game after a Barclays Premier League defeat to Swansea and draws with Sunderland and Burnley, coupled with the 4-0 Capital One Cup humiliation at MK Dons.

But the United board have backed their manager to the tune of £150million with the signings of Luke Shaw, Ander Herrera, Marcos Rojo, Angel di Maria, Daley Blind and Radamel Falcao and Van Gaal is adamant he knew the size of the task he was taking on.

“No, I don’t regret taking this job,” he tadmitted. “Yes, it is a massive job I have taken on at Manchester United. I realise that. And the situation is not worse than I thought; I knew what I would find on my plate.

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“I could have opted for an easier job. If I had gone to Tottenham, the job would not have been as enormous as here at United.

“I could have easily gone to Spurs. But I chose the biggest challenge of all the jobs in football. And I really wanted to join the number one club in the country, not Tottenham.

"Financially, Tottenham was kind of as attractive as Man United. But, in my eyes, Man United is still the number one club in England, Tottenham really is not."

Van Gaal will be hoping he is given more time than predecessor David Moyes, who was dismissed just 11 months after replacing Sir Alex Ferguson as United failed to qualify for the Champions League last season.

And the former Bayern Munich manager is confident his bosses have faith in him, citing a meeting with the Bavarians' general manager after a poor start to the Bundesliga season in 2009.

"My start at Bayern was just as bad as my start with Manchester United," he said. "But the big difference was that at Bayern I had already been called in for a major showdown with Uli Hoeness, who wanted an explanation.

“And what have United done? They have just bought more players for me. They kept buying players. They are supporting me. That is a sign of trust in the manager. I feel that. I feel their trust and belief in my ability.

“It is not just a matter of believing in my football philosophy, but in me as a person too. Do I get worried when I look at the league table now? Come off it, that means nothing. We have only just started.

“And the facts are that I have never let any clubs down. I have won things. I have given those clubs success. And that is exactly what I will do here at United.”