AFTER MAN UNITED’S dismal 1-0 loss to Southampton at Old Trafford on Saturday, the rumour mill surrounding Louis van Gaal’s future has gone into overdrive.
Here are some of the stories being reported today…
1. The Sun claims Van Gaal is on the brink of quitting United, claiming he held talks about his future with the club’s executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward yesterday.
2. It’s being reported in The Mail that Ed Woodward has canvassed senior players about Van Gaal’s methods, with a number of stars understood to have lost faith in the manager, while the executive vice-chairman wants Ryan Giggs to take over as interim boss until the end of the season if the Dutchman steps down.
3. It’s being suggested in The Star that Van Gaal will have showdown talks with Woodward over his future in the coming days.
4. The Times claims Jose Mourinho is increasingly confident of landing the Man United job if Van Gaal does step aside.
5. Van Gaal has apparently flown to Holland, though The Independent understands that he has left Manchester in order to celebrate his daughter’s birthday rather than as a means of escaping the current situation at Old Trafford.
6. Rumours began circulating that Ferguson said the words “he’s gone” after being pictured on camera in the immediate aftermath of Man United’s loss to Southampton at the weekend. However, the Mirror has interviewed “one of the UK’s top lip readers,” who claims that Ferguson actually said the words “let’s hope so”.
7. Meanwhile, in matters not directly linked with his future, the Star reports that Van Gaal will let out-of-favour striker Nick Powell move to Hull.
