Van Gaal: I’ve had no contact with Mourinho

“I can not do more and I shall prepare my players against Midtjylland [on Thursday] 100 per cent and I shall do that always”.

Van Gaal revealed during the week that he doesn’t expect any contact from his old pal Jose Mourinho to clear up the speculation surrounding the Dutchman’s future at Old Trafford.

Louis van Gaal admitted Manchester United’s best chance of qualifying for next season’s Champions League might be winning the Europa League, following defeat to Sunderland.

That would leave Guardiola without Champions League football during his first year at Manchester City – and leave Manchester United fans very satisfied indeed.

“We weren’t aggressive enough and that cost us”, the United captain told BT Sport.

“That era [of Ferguson] has gone and you’ve got to stop comparing the Manchester United of today to the Manchester United of yesteryear”.

The club have their worst-ever points total at this stage of a Premier League season as it stands, with 41 from 26 games, and their disappointment is compounded given how much money Van Gaal has spent since the start of his tenure.

Mourinho was Van Gaal’s assistant at Barcelona in the late 1990s and the two maintained a seemingly cordial relationship during the brief time they overlapped as managers of Man United and Chelsea, respectively.

With the sides above them all playing each other in a mouth-watering Sunday program, United could have closed to within three points of fourth-placed Manchester City but the gloom that has enveloped them most of the season returned.

Despite the loss, United manager van Gaal was pleased with Love’s maiden appearance.

“When I lost my job, he was lauded by everybody in football – by you people, the media and everybody else”.

“He played very well against Wolfsburg and then began to reach the level he showed at Munich – I think he can get back to it”. “Now many of you are the ones saying he should lose his job”.

Asked if the club’s presence in Europe’s elite competition was the bare minimum, he said: “Yes – but that’s also our aim, so you can not close your eyes from that”.

“I think what I said before the game, you have to win these kind of games and we didn’t and we can only blame ourselves”, he added.