There are some intriguing draws that could be thrown up, with United facing the prospect of a clash with a Valencia side managed by their former player Gary Neville, as well as a possible clash with Robin van Persie’s Fenerbahce.
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United crashed out with a 3-2 defeat at Wolfsburg in their final Group B fixture, with PSV Eindhoven joining the German side in the knockout stages following a 2-1 win at home to CSKA Moscow.
“Of course, some fans want to get rid of him now and it is a massive disappointment for United to be knocked out from what was a very easy group”.
Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said he was disappointed with Van Gaal, who coached Schweinsteiger at Bayern between 2009 and 2011. They’d point to a lengthy injury list that keeps robbing Van Gaal of key players. “He was the one who definitely wanted to sign him”.
“At the moment I can not defend myself because we are out of the Champions League”, said van Gaal, whose team now drop into the Europa League.
He still gave it a try, though, by saying that “facts” proved United was better than last season because the team had gone further in the League Cup – to the third round – and had reached the group stage of the Champions League after missing out on Europe entirely last season.
According to Low, the 31-year-old former Bayern Munich midfielder still needs time to get used to a different style of play, and a different league having spent all of his career up until the summer in the Bundesliga. They seem to be lacking a few characters, a few leaders.
“The goals they conceded on Tuesday night were from set-pieces”.
“As a ManUtd player I was embarrassed going from the Champions league to the Europa league”, Ferdinand said on Twitter, “we expected more of ourselves”.
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“I believe Basti has experienced so much in his career that he can cope with this easily”, said Draxler.
