His faith in Wayne Rooney was vindicated, his tactical substitution worked to perfection, Manchester United took control of their Champions League group and yet this was the night Louis van Gaal discovered just how close Old Trafford is to mutiny against his methods. Convincing supporters of Rooney's continued worth may be the easy part.
It was the 65th minute when Van Gaal made his first switch in an attempt to break the deadlock against CSKA Moscow. Marouane Fellaini, or "Plan B" as he has become known, replaced Anthony Martial and Old Trafford revolted en masse at the sight of a striker giving way to a midfielder with a crucial game goalless. The condemnation from the crowd was emphatic. Mercifully for the United manager, so was the outcome as Fellaini helped instigate the improvement necessary for victory and for Rooney to join Denis Law as the second highest goalscorer in United's history. Rooney and Van Gaal needed the release as much as United needed victory to edge clear of the Russian league leaders in Group B. Annoyance at the perceived lack of attacking threat from United was evident as the Stretford End pleaded for more intent before kick-off.
The appeals continued until the 79th minute when Rooney scored his 237th United goal, rewarding both his manager’s faith and the vocal backing of the home support. For all the focus on the United and England captain this season there are wider issues for Van Gaal to address – the supply to his one senior striker, the style, approach and balance of the team – with Old Trafford’s concerns manifested in the reaction to Fellaini’s introduction.
“Of course I heard that, I’m not deaf,” the United manager said. “That is the opinion of the fans but afterwards they shall not be disappointed with the decision of the manager.”Van Gaal’s quest to correct a run of three games without a goal led to Rooney and Martial starting where the numbers on their backs used to dictate – the young Frenchman leading the line at No9 and the 10 dropping in behind – but a cutting edge remained hard to come by.
Rooney's linkup play encouraged in the deeper role, with the England international involved in chances for Jesse Lingard and Marcos Rojo before the interval. The verbal sparring between Van Gaal and Paul Scholes has provided more entertainment than United's performances of late, and intensified before kick-off when the club's former midfielder questioned the manager's ability to cajole the best out of any striker.
Last week’s withering put-down from Van Gaal, who questioned whether Scholes was speaking for the benefit of United or himself, evidently had little effect as the pundit claimed Sergio Agüero would struggle to score in this team. “I want United to blast teams away and be creative. I want to see that but it’s not happened,” said Scholes on BT Sport.
“I think they’re brilliantly coached defensively. Sometimes you’ve got to do that against Barcelona or Real Madrid but not against Crystal Palace or CSKA Moscow at home. It’s difficult to coach attractive football.
“Whether Van Gaal doesn’t allow it, I don’t know. It’s a boring style of football. You have to wonder whether he has problem with forward players. Just look at the players he’s let go – Van Persie, Januzaj, Di María. Look at the bench on Saturday, there wasn’t a centre forward. Rooney is getting all the stick but I think any striker would struggle to score goals in that team. I think Sergio Agüero would struggle.”
Van Gaal was left in no doubt of the crowd’s misgivings as he headed down the touchline for the interval, although it was beyond dispute that his team had dominated CSKA throughout the first half.
Only a lack of composure in front of goal from Lingard and Rojo – when both miscued badly from Ashley Young crosses – denied United an advantage. Rojo also wasted a free header from a Rooney corner but that was the sum total of United chances after the restart until Van Gaal made his first substitution. The introduction of Fellaini sparked such an outcry not because Martial, the man he replaced, was troubling the Russian defence but because of what a midfielder for a striker represented and also with Ander Herrera remaining on the bench as United sought creativity. Yet the switch succeeded, with Fellaini's steady touch and Rooney's return to focal point of the attack increasing the home side's threat almost immediately.
Rooney had wasted a glorious chance before his moment finally arrived, steering home Lingard’s fine cross with an unstoppable header, but Old Trafford’s reaction to his decision-making was not lost on Van Gaal.
(Guardian service)
