Red Rants |
- United’s new signing not fazed by pressure
- Van Gaal can break world transfer record
- United to meet LVG’s demands
- Van Gaal’s first big change
| United’s new signing not fazed by pressure Posted: 23 Jul 2014 04:04 AM PDT
United had been monitoring Shaw’s progress since the turn on the year but the England international looked poised to join Chelsea, the club he had supported throughout his childhood, until United beat them in the race for Shaw’s services. The 19-year-old, however, insisted that there was only one club he ever wanted to join.
"It's great. When I found out they were interested in me I didn't think twice,” Shaw told NBC. "Manchester United are the biggest club in the world. When I found out they wanted to buy me, I spoke to my agent, he got in touch with Southampton and it got done. I am really excited and happy to be here." Alongside Ander Herrera, Shaw represents an excellent long-term signing for United but while both players could develop into a cornerstone of Van Gaal’s team for years to come, Ed Woodward is aware United need more signings between now and the beginning of the season to give Van Gaal the best possible chance of being successful in his first season at the club. Speaking about the Dutch manager, Shaw revealed he’s been impressed with Van Gaal’s methods so far. "I've only been here two days, we've had two training sessions and the manager has been working on what formation he wants to put in. It has been quite tough but I expected that when I first came back to preseason,” the 19-year-old said. "He seems like a great manager, he is straightforward and wants to get the best out of the players. That is something that is good for me so hopefully I will improve under him. One of the important things for me was that I heard he was good at producing younger players. He likes playing younger players and he has faith in them. That was another big thing for me, that he will give youngsters a chance. "You look at the season we had last season and everyone here wants to improve on that, to try and win trophies. That is what we are going to be aiming for. First thing for us is to have a good preseason, get everyone fit and raring to go for the season. This season, we want to come back as the Man United everyone once knew. Hopefully we can do that, push on and win some trophies." Evra’s departure means Shaw is currently United’s only option at left-back, but the England international insisted he won’t be fazed by the pressure of replacing the Frenchman. “I don’t feel any pressure to come in for Evra,” said Shaw in an interview with FIFA’s official website. “And with the new gaffer you have to impress on the pitch and that is something I am looking forward to – hopefully in these pre-season games I am looking to show him what I can do.” |
| Van Gaal can break world transfer record Posted: 23 Jul 2014 01:21 AM PDT
United kick off their Premier League season against Swansea in less than a month but Van Gaal has effectively been in charge only for a week and a lot is expected to happen between now and August 15th, as far as both arrivals and departures are concerned. Alex Buttner, Federico Macheda and Patrice Evra have joined Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand out of the club with Anderson, Bebe and another couple of players expected to follow suit.
On the arrivals front, meanwhile, United have secured the signings of Luke Shaw and Ander Herrera for a combined fee of just over £55m but Van Gaal is thought to be keen to add another couple of players to ensure his first season at Old Trafford isn’t one of transition. According to the Guardian, the United manager has been told he’s free to break the world transfer record, a statement which will undoubtedly get the fans excited but one which should be taken with more than a pinch of salt nonetheless, given United’s recent record in the transfer window up until this summer. United have spent £27m on Shaw and £28.5 on Herrera so far but Ed Woodward is adamant the club could even break their transfer record, which currently is the £37.5m United forked out for Juan Mata in January. Asked whether United could compete with the world’s best clubs from a financial point of view, Woodward said: "Of course it's in our capabilities. “You guys think about the money in a way that I don't. I get pointed in the direction of a target that the manager wants and there is an assessment of what that might cost and I'll negotiate hard to do the best I can on the trade. "I stand by what I said – there is no budget. We are in a very strong financial position. We can make big signings. That doesn't mean we go and throw money around. Louis is the manager. We have a lot of scouting output through the last 12 months, flagging up various things to us. Louis is the one that makes the ultimate decision around who he wants in the squad. I'm not going to force feed him with a player that he hasn't selected." Woodward insisted that while Van Gaal has only been in charge for a week, the club aren’t wasting time and, behind the scenes, they’re actively pursuing new targets. "We're still looking at options. We're not sitting on our hands waiting for Louis. He is very good at communicating clearly what he wants," said Woodward. United need at least another world class midfielder, a world class centre-back, a left-back to provide cover for Luke Shaw and a winger and a host of players have been linked with a move to Old Trafford this summer. Arturo Vidal, Mats Hummels, Juan Cuadrado, Kevin Strootman, Daley Blind and Angel Di Maria are just some of the many players currently on United’s radar and Woodward insisted that’s an encouraging sign for the club, particularly after the new commercial deal signed with Adidas confirmed the club’s commercial status. "What the deal shows and what we're seeing with everything we're doing from a commercial perspective, talking to agents, talking from a player's perspective about wanting to come to us, we are the biggest club in the world, there's no question about that," said Woodward. United’s record deal with Adidas might dwarf those of any other European clubs but the thought of United spending in the excess of £60-70m on the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and James Rodriguez remains as probable as snow in July, but Woodward is confident United could break the world record if needs be. Last summer’s pantomime villain also admitted that his first season at the club was far from ideal but he has a much better feeling about the Van Gaal era. "It was a challenging year. In an ideal situation I would have worked with [Sir] Alex [Ferguson] for a year. I feel a lot more positivity in terms of this coming season. Part of that is simply because of what Louis did at the World Cup,” United’s executive vice-chairman said. "We are a different sized club. You have not experienced what being a Manchester United manager is until you have been Manchester United manager." |
| Posted: 22 Jul 2014 11:49 PM PDT
United play in Pasadena – a 30-mile trip from Los Angeles, where the team is based – on Wednesday evening – early Thursday morning in the UK – and then face trips to Denver, Washington and Detroit and, potentially, a trip to Miami on August 4th if they reach the final of the International Champions Cup.
Van Gaal has made clear United must cut back on their commercial commitments to focus on football. "The tour was already arranged [before he became manager] and I shall adapt and United will do everything to apply to my rules but I have said that already. This is the first time I am late for a press conference, but it is the Los Angeles traffic, so I am sorry for that," said Van Gaal, who arrived at Pasadena’s Rose Bowl almost half an hour late because of congested traffic. United still don’t know where they’ll be travelling on next summer’s tour, but Van Gaal said the club had agreed to meet his request for a shorter tour. “Yes, I hope that [it will be shorter], but they have already said that to me and I am very confident that it shall be,” explained the 62-year-old, who claimed United’s commitments to their sponsors were complicating their pre-season. “We have to prepare the season and when you have commercial activities and dreadful distances, having to fly a lot and the jet lag, it is not positive for a good preparation," said the Dutchman. Van Gaal, however, was extremely pleased with how his squad has worked under him so far. "I have to say that is has been fantastic. Maybe you think that every trainer-coach will say that when they are new, but I mean it. The players are very anxious to do what I say and follow the instruction of my assistants,” he said. "The focus of what I have seen in training sessions is top level, but we have to see if the performances are also top level." |
| Posted: 22 Jul 2014 05:44 AM PDT
The Dutchman is in the States where United will take on LA Galaxy in their first pre-season friendly of their North American tour but that hasn’t stopped him from demanding changes to be made on the training pitches.
Van Gaal inspected the training facilities at Carrington for the first time last Wednesday and wasted no time in asking the club to fit them with the same Desso Grass-Master system currently in place at Old Trafford, as he believes his players will benefit from training on the same high-tech surface they’ll be playing on every two weeks. Far from the “yes man” attitude United’s hierarchy would have enjoyed under David Moyes, Van Gaal also demanded floodlights to be installed in the training complex to allow the team to train outside in winter – and, hopefully, to force those who indulge in a drink or two over the festive period to run their extra pounds off under glorious artificial light. Installing floodlights at Carrington could cost up to £4m according to the Mirror, while Van Gaal also wants trees to be planted around the training pitches to create a more intimate atmosphere, after deeming them too “windy” and “exposed”. One would have thought that, with all the long balls they obviously practised in training last season, United players would have realised the pitches were too windy. Is there the reason why Moyes’ masterplan failed so miserably? |
| You are subscribed to email updates from Red Rants To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
Written by TBMU Admin
We are Manchester United Fan located around the World which provides user friendly, effective and easy to browse info regarding our Team. Each support/info is free. Support us by clicking the ads located in this site. Thanks
Posts
0 comments :
Post a Comment