Manchester United boss insists he was 'amazed' that his side were outfought by Arsenal

Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal was 'amazed' that Arsenal outfought them to win 3-0

LOUIS VAN GAAL admitted that he was "amazed" that his Manchester United team were outfought as Arsenal beat them 3-0 yesterday.

 

A woeful United found themselves three goals down after a sensational opening 19 minutes of football at the Emirates Stadium, as the brilliant Alexis Sanchez scored twice, and set up a goal for Mesut Ozil.

United simply never recovered as they slumped to their second league defeat of the season and dropped to third place - and Van Gaal was brutal in his assessment.

 

The Dutchman said: "I didn't expect that. I was amazed. We did not perform to our game plan, we did not have the will to win.

"We have lost, and lost in a way that you cannot lose when you are top of the league. You cannot start like we started, and they know that."

 

Van Gaal saved his anger particularly for hapless midfield duo Bastian Schweinsteiger and Michael Carrick, saying: "There was a lack of ball winning. We were not slow, but we were not aggressive. Players like Carrick and Schweinsteiger have a fantastic positional sense, but you need aggression and you need to win the second ball.

"You have to do it not only with the two in midfield but also as a team. You need aggression when you have a duel, and Arsenal were much more aggressive.

"When you give a team like Arsenal so much space to play their football then you know you will lose. We prepared ourselves to be more compact and not lose our aggression, so I am very disappointed.

 

Alexis Sanchez scored twice as Arsenal led 3-0 inside 20 minutes at the Emirates

"I don't know why it happened. I put the question at half time and after the match because normally I say things how I see them. But that is difficult to answer for the players, because they are all in an emotional moment.

"The problem did not start at the back, it started in midfield. Their midfield players, especially Santi Cazorla and Ozil, had too much time and space. And they have the quality to profit from that."

The result was a massive boost for Arsenal after their miserable 3-2 midweek Champions League loss to Olympiakos, and striker Theo Walcott said: "You could sense from kick off that the desire was there. We wanted it more." 

 

Mesut Ozil celebrates scoring the Gunners' second goal against Van Gaal's side