NO MARGIN FOR MISTAKES
Van Gaal knows any slip-up tonight in Germany could see United go out
WHAT looked like a relatively easy group when the draw was made in August will reach its conclusion tonight, with Manchester United fighting for their lives in the Champions League.
Victory over Group B leaders Wolfsburg here in the Volkswagen Arena will guarantee top spot and qualification for the knockout stages. Anything less, and United will rely on the outcome of PSV Eindhoven’s game at home to CSKA Moscow. The margins really are that fine. It did not help that United landed in Germany yesterday without seven of their senior players and facing more questions over their toothless, one-paced attack.
Just to add to their concerns, Bastian Schweinsteiger returned to his homeland with a three-match ban hanging over his head after he was charged by the FA with violent conduct yesterday over an incident involving Winston Reid in Saturday’s goalless draw with West Ham at Old Trafford.
That was United’s fifth stalemate in their last nine games. In the absence of captain Wayne Rooney, £58million signing Anthony Martial is expected to lead the line again tonight but the young Frenchman has scored just once in his previous 13 outings.
Forgotten man Nick Powell, whose only appearance for Manchester United in the last three years came in the Capital One Cup defeat at MK Dons more than 15 months ago, has also travelled with the squad.
In spite of the backdrop to this tie, manager Louis van Gaal believes it is only a matter of time before his team start scoring again.
‘You never know that for sure, but I have the experience as a manager that the goals shall come,’ he said.
‘When you are creating chances at the end, you shall finish those kind of chances. That’s why we have that belief. It’s a matter of time and I hope we can prove it tomorrow.
‘Normally, we create more chances than our opponent but you have to finish because football is all about scoring goals. That’s the important aspect of the game.
‘As a manager, you cannot be pleased when it’s like that. You have to score. When you ask me about the performance as a team, mostly I can say that I am satisfied.’
The United boss tried to lift the pressure on Martial, saying: ‘I think he is very talented but we have to remember he is just 20 years old. We have to give him time and that’s always difficult when you are playing for a team like Manchester United because the expectations at the club are very high.
‘I am convinced that he will continue with his performances, and that he shall score at the right moment again.
‘You cannot expect a 20-year-old player coming to the Premier League to score every week.
Anthony doesn’t need that kind of pressure put on him.’
Rooney is the most notable of the seven absentees with an ankle injury and Morgan Schneiderlin is the latest casualty with a hip injury he sustained against West Ham.
Youngsters Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, Sean Goss and Guillermo Varela could all be on the bench tonight.
Michael Carrick is the only survivor from the United team that won here exactly six years ago to the day through Michael Owen’s hat-trick, having already qualified for the last 16.
Failure to progress tonight would seriously undermine van Gaal’s rebuilding job at Old Trafford considering the quality of the opposition he has faced in Group B.
Still, he played down all suggestions that it is the most crucial game of his 17-month reign at United.
‘Of course it is an important match but, at a club such as Manchester United, every game is very important,’ added van Gaal. ‘But that is this moment. It’s also very important for the club to continue in the Champions League — and for the players. They want to show their qualities at the highest level.