Van Gaal trusts United over Mourinho rumours

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has hailed Ryan Giggs’ work rate and is impressed by his assistant’s coaching skills and ability to read the game.

On the question of whether United’s silence regarding Mourinho was unsettling, Van Gaal, 64, said: “You don’t have to answer invented stories”.

Louis van Gaal has confessed he does not know if he will still be Manchester United manager should he fail to lead his team to a top four finish in the current campaign.

They have another story indicating that Van Gaal has pleaded with Manchester United to come clean on whether they have had discussions with Jose Mourinho or not.

United, who are fifth in the Premier League, travel to face second-from-bottom Sunderland on Saturday.

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Van Gaal risked further alienating fans by claiming finishing fourth would represent a good season although he admits it might not be enough to save his neck.

“Then, I shall be disappointed, because that is the effect of what I have said [that he trusts them]”, he told reporters.

Depay started Man United’s Under-21 game against Norwich City on Monday, however, and Van Gaal has said that he was pleased with the attacker’s performance and indeed the reaction of the fans to the number seven. “But if it is like that, they have to say it to me”.

The BBC understands Van Gaal’s position is precarious after learning that Jose Mourinho has held talks with the club about taking over in the summer.

On Marcos Rojo (shoulder) and Antonio Valencia (leg), Van Gaal added: “They’re coming back and I hope to have them as soon as possible”. I don’t want to say anything about injuries but we have a group of 26 players and we have 11 injured players or very exhausted players. “We have a lot of injuries and we have to cope with that”. ‘We know that they (the top four) play against each other so it’s sure that some competitors will lose points – but we have to win our points’.

“Those questions are for Ryan, not for me”, he told The Independent.