Fallen football giants Manchester United has appointed Holland national team coach Louis van Gaal as their new manager. Ryan Giggs will be his assistant, after announcing his retirement from playing.
It will be a tough job for them both after replacing the unfortunate David Moyes, whichever way one looks at it, was given very little time to build his own team. How does anyone follow the great Sir Alex Ferguson? Their fans will now have to settle for a season without European club football after probably their worst season in living memory, and of course, looking enviously at local rivals Manchester City winning both the Premier League title and the League Cup.
The Dutch coach has been very successful, but it remains to be seen whether the current board will give him the time and the space to develop the squad in his own image, particularly when many favourites like Giggs, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic are now leaving the club. Many of the older players Sir Alex signed should probably have been sold a few years ago. However, they often performed for him at the highest level when it was required. By contrast, many of the younger members of the squad had often not delivered what had been hoped.
Hopefully, Van Gaal can use the team’s European exile to inspire them to success on the domestic front next season.