Lack of transfer activity may come back to haunt Van Gaal

Louis van Gaal responded to questions concerning the summer exodus of players by explaining that he likes to work with a smaller squad. This became a stick with which to beat him with after games earlier in the season where the team had no striker on the bench and Wayne Rooney floundering on the pitch.

The failure to sign anyone in the January transfer window may prove to be an error, also. The club may have reasoned that the elimination from the Champions League and the unavailability of top talent in January meant that there was little requirement to spend for the sake of it.

However, the prospect of the Europa League highlights a flaw in that line of thought. Now that United are facing an uphill battle to qualify for the Champions League, the club should at least be considering winning the Europa League as an alternative method into Europe’s most lucrative competition.

Desperate times call for desperate measures and consequently, rolling out a team padded out with youngsters would be ill-advised on those tricky Thursday nights. Playing the first team would also be a risk due to the evidence we have seen from other English teams that struggle in the league at the weekend, following a Europa League exertion on a Thursday.

A couple of capable back-up options, in positions where United have been left threadbare, would have provided the squad with the wherewithal to navigate the fixture list without having to play right-backs at left back or teenagers on their debut.

Fans may have turned up their noses at the thought of a player of the calibre of Mathieu Debuchy but he is a French international with experience playing on European nights. The way the season has panned out, circumstances now dictate that the Europa League should be taken seriously. Accordingly, the club shouldn’t be relying on inexperienced young players to perform in high-stakes games.

Guillermo Varela was handed his first start against Wolfsburg in December and while his overall level of performance was solid, the opening goal came after he allowed Naldo to get in front of him. United were knocked out of the Champions League that night and while that certainly wasn’t the fault of Varela, it exemplifies how one lapse in concentration can be more costly when it comes to tournament football.

Van Gaal should be applauded for his trust in youth and fans will be pleased with how Cameron Borthwick-Jackson is performing under the Dutchman. However, this should not be conflated with throwing in youngsters at the deep end due to there simply being no other option.

It should be noted that Van Gaal did state he was looking for full-backs in the window so there is the very real possibility that this was another occasion where Ed Woodward was has left a lot to be desired.