Kamara: Louis van Gaal’s Man Utd mind games nothing new

On hearing that Louis van Gaal had professed that Manchester United were set to finish second or third this season, all but ruling out winning the Premier League title on Wednesday, my reaction was to take it with a pinch of salt.

Imagine if David Moyes had said that, he would have been absolutely pilloried. If that’s what he has said then there are two ways to look at it.

One, does he genuinely believe that? Or two, is he simply taking the pressure off the players?

If he says they are going to win it, everybody says “oh crikey, here we go”, and the pressure is on them week in, week out and after every single defeat everybody rams it down his throat.

I wouldn’t read too much into what he has said at all. One or two fans may have had their noses put out by what he has said but at the end of the day, even when a team is 10 points clear at the top of the table, a manager isn’t going to come out and say that they are going to win the title.

It’s one of those things where he’s obviously playing mind games.

Giggs the obvious choice to succeed LVG…

In the same fan evening LVG went on to say that Anthony Martial was purchased for the next Manchester United manager, before implying that man would be Ryan Giggs.

It may be a bold shout for the Dutchman to be naming his successor when he plans to retire in 2017, but I don’t think it’s rocket science to be honest.

Ryan Giggs has been there learning his trade sat alongside David Moyes and now he’s there sat alongside Louis van Gaal.

To be overlooked in a situation like that would be horrific for him, if another manager was to come in from outside. It’s not going to happen overnight.

Louis hasn’t said he is going to retire tomorrow; he wants to be there for the foreseeable future. It’s not something that I think will be a shock.

Giggs has been there learning from one of the best and it’s at United that I can see him plying his trade, something I think should have happened with Steven Gerrard at Liverpool.

Weekend encounter tough to call…

The weekend’s match between United and Liverpool is a real poser, but my money is on the draw.

You would have said that up until the Swansea game that Manchester United should be heavy favourites, but then Garry Monk’s side showed that there are some deficiencies in the United side.

It’s one of those games that even though Liverpool have been finishing lower down in the table for some years now, it’s never a game that’s easy to call.

It’s a game that both players and supporters know that there is a lot of history and meaning to it and for that reason I am sitting on the fence and looking at the meeting on Saturday seeing the points shared.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.

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