Louis van Gaal: Something Was Not Right

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has said he sensed that his side won’t do well at Everton after watching them warm-up.

Manchester United were beaten 3-0, and struggled to create clear-cut chances despite dominating possession for the majority of the match.

“I had the feeling; the warm-up was not so good,” said Van Gaal, whose concern was shared by assistant Ryan Giggs.

“In the last minutes before the game you hope you can recover and stimulate your players but then it is too late.

“You have to prepare the match already two or three days before and Everton have done that and they have won because of that.”

United lost a chance to further increase the gap between them and fifth placed Liverpool.

“This is the first match that the other team have shown more fighting spirit than us,” Van Gaal added.

“Our motivation, inspiration and aggression was not as high as the opponent. When you see the first goal, three duels in a row we lost and that is an example.

“I hope it shall not happen again but, as a coach, I know it shall happen again.”

Manchester United are currently seven points clear of Liverpool. However, Liverpool have a game in hand and would be looking to cut the gap to four points and put some pressure on The Red Devils for a Champions League spot.