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Van Gaal looks to shape summer spending around United’s youth

By on March 4, 2016

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has said he will shape his summer spending with the club’s first-team breakthroughs in mind, with the goal of protecting the club’s next homegrown generation.

With breakout forward Marcus Rashford on everybody’s mind after the teenager scored two goals on his United senior debut against Midtjylland in the Europa League and bagged another brace against Arsenal last weekend, Van Gaal said that he is inclined to give more opportunities to United’s youth and vies to preserve Rashford’s fantastic form.

The young Englishman follows in a long line of United break-out stars in recent years, including Federico Macheda, James Wilson, and Adnan Januzaj, but none have yet to maintain their early promise throughout extended spells in the squad. Januzaj was a revelation during the 2013/14 season under David Moyes, but was reduced to a sideshow after the signing of Angel di Maria the following summer and loaned out to Borussia Dortmund this past winter.

Van Gaal hopes to avoid the same disappointing blip with Rashford and fellow first-team breakthroughs Cameron Borthwick-Jackson and Guillermo Varela.

“Of course, yes,” he answered when asked whether Rashford’s recent success affects their summer transfer dealings, per The Guardian. “Also in January that we took the risk for the left-back position that we didn’t buy. We needed a left-back and we inquired about a lot of players. Some have said it now. It is always the agent that is doing that because it is interesting Man United is inquiring but we said OK, maybe Borthwick-Jackson and Varela can do the job. There was Spanish interest in Varela and we said no.”

He also said that Rashford’s breakthrough was a part of a wider youth-policy he has adopted at the club.

“Now I have read that Rashford is saving me,” said the Dutchman. “No. Rashford is thanks to my policy and the club, of course, has proved that. He is there because of that – and the same thing for Borthwick-Jackson, Varela, and a lot of other players. But they have to prove it because it is very risky to do that. Youngsters are not consistent; we are talking about consistency.

“There are of course exceptions like Anthony Martial but that is a big exception. Most of the players cannot show that every week, so it is a big risk but, at the end, we are in three competitions still and the team has more spirit and the older players are coming back.

“So we have a great momentum at this moment because we have discovered that a lot of players can play at this level and the older players have to compete with these youngsters. And it’s fantastic, and that is also what I have experienced at my other teams, so I think it’s always good to have youngsters in your selection.”

About Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan, founder of Football Every Day, lives and breaths football from the West Coast of the United States in California. Aside from founding Football Every Day in January of 2013, Alex has also launched his own journalism career and hopes to help others do the same with FBED. He covers the San Jose Earthquakes as a beat reporter for QuakesTalk.com and his work has also been featured in the BBC's Match of the Day Magazine.