Van Gaal’s way or the highway

Louis van Gaal has one clear brief from the Old Trafford hierarchy: To drive Manchester United back into the big time — and do it as fast as he can.

At 63, he does not have time to dawdle in the slow lane. Since he is planning to hand over the keys within a couple of years, the Dutchman must make his mark quickly. That was why he did not need a second invitation to put his foot down and spend big.

As always with van Gaal, those deemed superfluous have been tossed out of the window. That famous old adage of “My way or the highway” is a hallmark of his strict totalitarian approach.

I was especially shocked to see Robin van Persie, his former Holland captain (and one-time bosom buddy), ditched after just one under-par season. With Radamel Falcao departing to free up a striking space, I did not envisage van Persie’s exit.

If someone had told me British record buy Angel di Maria would also get dumped within a year, sold for £15 million less than the £59.7 million paid for him, I would have scoffed. Yet that is what is happening this week. Van Gaal is unhappy with the gifted Argentine’s attitude and is unwilling to give him a second chance.

Even David de Gea, arguably his most vital player, is being shown the door voluntarily. While van Gaal does not want his goalkeeper to leave for Real Madrid, he would rather get him out of the building pronto. Who you are, and what you have done, does not matter greatly to van Gaal. He will not foot the bill for excess baggage.

It is interesting that three of his five acquisitions already have experience of buying into the grandmaster’s methods. Memphis Depay, Sergio Romero and Bastian Schweinsteiger arrived delighted. His reputation as one of football’s ‘winners’ still has a serious pull — and when he likes you, he is supposed to be a wonderful man to play for.

I fancy Depay to excite the Old Trafford faithful. While comparisons with Cristiano Ronaldo are premature, the 21-year-old does have the strut of a player who knows he belongs with the elite.

Quick, hard to knock off the ball and full of tricks, the ex-PSV Eindhoven star will look to create and fire off shots at every opportunity. A scorer of seven direct free kicks last term, he also brings a game-changing skillset from dead balls. In a couple of years, he could be a superstar.

World Cup winner Schweinsteiger is a safe pair of hands. The streetwise German will provide the box-to-box qualities that have been missing from the United midfield.

Morgan Schneiderlin brings legs. Michael Carrick is still smooth in possession (and I still expect him to start most games), but he cannot cover as much ground as the Frenchman, who should, in theory, stop rival teams strolling through the middle ground as easily as they have.

At right-back, Italian international Matteo Darmian has looked the part pre-season. Van Gaal’s faith in makeshift defender Antonio Valencia was unusually misplaced, and the 25-year-old offers something going forward as well as solidity in defence.

Who is next? With the squad shorn of several stellar names, United must keep spending to guarantee improvement.

Until Sergio Ramos officially pens a new deal at Real Madrid, he remains the ideal recruit. Marcos Rojo, Chris Smalling, Phil Jones and Daley Blind are all decent enough players, but van Gaal needs a leader. He needs a wise head to hold things together at the back.

Failure to sign a central defender of Ramos’ pedigree would immediately rule them out as title contenders, in my view. It is that important.

So, too, is another centre forward. As superb as Wayne Rooney can be (and his best seasons have always been as the side’s principal striker), he cannot be expected to carry the torch on his own. Depay is more of a winger-cum-forward, and James Wilson is not ready to step up.

If there is still cash in the Dutchman’s pocket, I would be staggered if he does not go for one of the likes of Edinson Cavani, Robert Lewandowski, Gonzalo Higuain or Karim Benzema. They are big-time strikers who belong at a club like United.

Pedro appears to be Di Maria’s pacey replacement, and I would expect him to shine. If he and Depay get going down the flanks, United will be a nightmare to play against.

No one knows what van Gaal’s best XI will look like. My hunch is that they will be much stronger this year. The midfield unit is blessed with great quality, finally, and with a bit of stardust sprinkled at the back and up front, United will look formidable again. Good enough to win the Premier League? Not this season. One more year with van Gaal at the wheel, and they should be ready.

PREDICTION: 3RD

Players to watch

Luke Shaw

— Overweight and regularly injured, Shaw did little to justify the £27 million outlay that made him one of the world’s most valuable teenagers in his first season at United. A year older and wiser, and having spent part of his summer holiday in Dubai working around the clock on his fitness, the ex-Saints star is now looking lean and full of beans. If van Gaal wants United to play faster, more adventurous football this season (and he says he does), then Shaw’s athleticism and quality down the left should prove invaluable.

Morgan Schneiderlin

— It was imperative for the Red Devils to recruit a younger defensive midfielder who did not lack mobility, and the France international solves that in one swashbuckling, £24 million swoop. I have watched Schneiderlin closely for several seasons now, and his game has always impressed me. More than just a sitting player, he can pass well and chips in with the occasional goal on top. In many ways, I was baffled why it took so long for a ‘big club’ to take the gamble on him. With proven Premier League pedigree, and time for him to develop as a footballer, I believe he will make a positive impression at Old Trafford.

Wayne Rooney

— United’s skipper is just 20 goals away from breaking Sir Bobby Charlton’s club record of 249, and I fully expect him to do so in 2015/16. Loved by his manager, and trusted to lead the line week in week out, only injury can deny him a hatful. Now 29, Rooney must stay fit and healthy. Unlike someone like Luis Suarez, he has never been able to hit the ground running after a lay-off, and over the last three seasons, he has lost the flow that made him such a brilliant striker in 2011/12 — a season that saw him net 34 times. If he is close to that number in May, it will mean United have enjoyed a cracking campaign.

TODAY EPL analyst Adrian Clarke is a former Arsenal midfielder who has played at every level of English football. Now an experienced sports journalist, he writes for many publications around the world.