Van Gaal dismisses Mourinho-Man Utd reports

Costa rounded goalkeeper David De Gea to net his sixth goal in seven league appearances under Hiddink and cancel out Jesse Lingard’s 61st-minute volley.

With the home side not yet losing under Guus Hiddink, they kept banging on the door and Costa eventually got into the box in the final minutes, rounding De Gea before slotting home – leaving Van Gaal and the United players stunned.

And a win at Stamford Bridge on Sunday could reignite the Red Devils’ hopes of succeeding Chelsea as Premier League champions. On my goal I just turned and hit it and it went in but to be honest it was the three points we wanted.

They are 12 adrift of Leicester and six points behind the fourth Champions League spot occupied by Manchester City.

“You have not spoken to Ed Woodward, nor with the Glazers”, Van Gaal added.

Chelsea remains in the lower reaches of the standings – 13th – closer to the relegation zone than its usual place among the top four elite.

Hiddink replaced Mourinho at Chelsea in December and declined the opportunity to fully appraise United’s season, suggesting the Blues had enough concerns of their own.

Costa put a late header over the bar but made amends by taking Fabregas’s pass as Blind slipped and sliding in the equaliser. Also we could have scored again after the first goal but you don’t reward yourselves.

Following Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Manchester United, Terry stated there are no ongoing discussions between himself and Chelsea. “Then we didn’t keep the ball, or attack in the way I think we have to”, he told Sky Sports. “You have to study, study statistics”.

United dictated large parts of the game, making an assertive start at Stamford Bridge, passing with precision and speed across the field. It was a passage of play that demonstrated the potential in Van Gaal’s side.

After bursting onto the scene and scoring four goals in his first four games as a United player, Anthony Martial went missing for a while. United worked their way forward with the ball sent wide by Martial to Cameron Borthwick-Jackson whose cross – and he delivers a very risky cross – from the left was cushioned by Rooney to Lingard, who swivelled sharply to send an athletic right-foot shot beyond Courtois. So we have to do that better.

The struggles of Manchester United and Chelsea have given one of the most charged English years in recent history a different and more desperate edge than we’re used to seeing. A fantastic cross also. “After conceding late on it felt like a defeat but we have to move onto the next game now”.

On the south-coast, though, Arsenal emerged from its January slump.