The current boss at Old Trafford has a contract until the summer of 2017 and both he and the club have always communicated that both sides will honour it. However Van Gaal’s position is becoming increasingly untenable and the lack of progress this season after the bear minimum of finishing fourth last term is concerning.
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According to the Sun, United have sent scouts to watch the £20million-rated Swiss defender twice recently and he is high on Van Gaal’s wishlist.
Gill added that Mendes assured Woodward of Mourinho’s confidence that he could win the league in his first season at Old Trafford, while the 52-year-old would also be prepared to tone down his off-field antics.
Former Tottenham Hotspur forward Garth Crooks was left shocked at Manchester United’s defending against Southampton on Saturday, which allowed Charlie Austin to steal in and score the only goal of the game on his debut for the visitors.
They are now five points away from the Premier League’s top four and a Champions League qualifying place, which is all a far cry from the day of United’s multiple title-winning days under Sir Alex Ferguson, who worked closely with Gill as the club’s chief executive before the pair both stood down in 2013.
Smalling says he shares the fans’ disapproval at the poor performance but also believes credit should go to Ronald Koeman’s side for being well-organised and hard to break down.
Fans have become disillusioned with the team’s playing style, calling for more emphasis on attack while Van Gaal has adopted a more defensive approach.
Although van Gaal knows his approval rating is at an all-time low with United fans, the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager refused to be drawn on whether his job may be under threat.
“I’m very disappointed that I can not reach the expectations of the fans”, he said after the defeat to Southampton.
But regarding the much-needed arrival of creative talents, van Gaal said: “I think one player can not change everything”.
Even if you are “going back to the 50s with Matt Busby, when [Gill] started supporting them, with George Best, [United] played in a certain way”.
“We’re fans as well as directors and we don’t want booing, we want cheering”, Gill said. “But nevertheless, we had to win, and we could have won, but it is not happening”.
“[The fans] are right [to boo], I can not deny that. We are not very lucky with our injuries, that’s a problem”, said Van Gaal, who watched Matteo Darmian hobble off in the second half holding his chest after an aerial collision with Shane Long.
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“For me, what we did in the past was great but you’ve got to have the players to do that – the Ryan Giggs running down the wing, [David] Beckham, [Paul] Scholes”.
