Louis van Gaal may seek to solve Manchester United’s goalscoring problems by buying a new striker in the transfer window. United have just 25 goals in their last 25 games, and Van Gaal
knows this is not good enough. The manager believes a change of luck will help but is also willing to spend to try to turn United’s season around.
The Dutchman has overseen seven goalless draws this season, including six at Old Trafford. Swansea City are the visitors today and as United are nine points behind Arsenal and Leicester City they have to start winning games if their title challenge is to be reignited.
Lack of goals
Last month United failed to claim a single victory and were knocked out of the Champions League. It was the poorest December in the club’s 138-year history and
Wayne Rooney
and
Anthony Martial
are United’s joint top scorers in all competitions with seven each.
“It [a lack of goals] can be solved with money but also on the training pitch,” said Van Gaal, who has recalled 22-year-old striker Will Keane from a loan spell at Preston.
“Scoring goals is a quality. We have that quality but at this moment there is a lack of confidence at the right time or we need to buy another striker. It is always like that.
“That is our problem [scoring]. When you analyse the matches we are always capable of playing in our style. Only Arsenal, and maybe the first half against Stoke and Palace, we didn’t play in that style.”
United lost the first two of those games without scoring and drew the last 0-0. “All the rest, we had that style, we created chances and were the dominating team. But we didn’t score,” he said.
“We need also the luck of a striker. There are several players who played in the striker’s position. They need luck. How many players have had the chances to score and why they didn’t score? You cannot always explain that.
“Of course, we are looking always for solutions in the team. Also for this moment, but we still have a good team and we can still score goals. I am convinced of that. But we also need a little luck.”
Pressure
In the summer Van Gaal sold Javier Hernández to Bayer Leverkusen and Robin van Persie to Fenerbahce and allowed Radamel Falcao to leave following a one-year loan. He has since approved James Wilson’s loan to Brighton & Hove Albion.
“We could have kept all the strikers but then there would have been a lot of strikers in the tribune [stands],” said the manager. “They are not happy then. They want to go away. It is the story of Hernández, for example. He wants to play. ”
United have lost all three of Van Gaal’s matches with Swansea. “It is more or less the same test [as Chelsea]. The pressure that I have seen by myself is still the same. We cannot allow the gap.” Guardian Service
