Van Gaal Admits Manchester United ‘Not Good Enough’ to Win Champions League

All the talk among United supporters – raised on a tradition of exciting, uninhibited attacking football – is of the team’s lack of goals under what they believe to be manager Louis van Gaal’s sterile conservative approach.

Morgan Schneiderlin remains confident Manchester United can progress to the next round of the Champions League by defeating Wolfsburg and revealed his side will treat the clash as the final of Europe’s elite club competition.

It was the seventh goalless draw of Louis van Gaal’s Premier League reign; 13.2% of his Manchester United games have ended without a goal. That’s a normal issue but you can’t score every chance and when you see how many players get chances in our team, it’s not a fixed person.

“I know they will not attack very much because they will continue [to the last 16] with a draw and that result would make us dependent on the PSV Eindhoven result [against CSKA Moscow]”.

But Van Gaal insisted United will get back among the goals and hailed tonight’s Group B match as the most important of his time at Old Trafford.

“I have the experience as a manager to know that the goals shall come”, Van Gaal said defiantly.

“We’ve created enough chances to score, so that was not the problem”.

“We need to cut out the simple mistake”, said Wolfsburg’s Germany midfielder Julian Draxler.

Afterwards, Van Gaal was adamant that his team are not as tiresome as the statistics suggest. But you have to put them in’. “I want to win titles and I think United is also used to winning titles, so that is definitely my goal”.

The United squad could be depleted further for Saturday’s game at Bournemouth after Bastian Schweinsteiger was charged with violent conduct for an alleged elbow on Winston Reid against West Ham.

However, the Dutchman is adamant it is only a matter of time before the goals start flowing and is hopeful it can happen against Wolfsburg.

But Schurrle – who joined Wolfsburg from Chelsea in February – said: “It’s an extremely attractive game and that’s why we’re extremely motivated”. These are all players who have shown many times that they can play in a great way. “We have players who have the abilities…”

“It is not very common for West Ham to come here and take something at Manchester United”.