Paul Scholes has described Louis Van Gaal as a “mad genius” and has claimed Manchester United will not win the league this season, as they haven’t strengthened their squad enough, compared to what their Premier League rivals have done.
The former United midfield maestro is confident the club have got the right man to steady the ship after a disastrous 12 months and towards a top four finish, but Scholes insists a title challenge is beyond the current squad’s capabilities, as they lack quality in midfield, despite the arrival of Ander Herrera.
“I find it hard to see them as Premier League title contenders this season,” he said in his column for the Independent.
“My instinct is that the title will be between Manchester City and Chelsea, with United, Liverpool and Arsenal in competition for the two remaining Champions League places.
“The chief reason I see little prospect of United winning the title is that they have not signed enough players in this window.
“United needed to buy a top-level midfielder, of which there were very few available this summer. Just two, in fact. And Cesc Fabregas and Toni Kroos have already made their moves (to Chelsea and Real Madrid respectively).”
However, following David Moyes’ disastrous tenure last season, Scholes has plenty of faith in Van Gaal and he believes the Dutchman’s aura will help United climbing up the table.
“Louis van Gaal has the respect of the players. He got it as soon as he arrived. This is a man who has managed some huge clubs: Ajax, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and he has just taken the Netherlands to third place in a World Cup finals.
“He is a man with presence. He looks a bit of a scary man. Good. Sir Alex Ferguson was a scary man too, at times, and it is possible to push players into performances. From what I’ve seen in pre-season, he looks a bit mad. He’s a bit like a mad genius – he looks a bit crazy.”
