In Uefa and Fifa it's forbidden to play within 48 hours: Louis van Gaal bemoans festive schedule
Manchester United manager complains about the lack of time to prepare an injury-plagued squad for Sunday lunch-time showdown at Tottenham Hotspur
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has bemoaned the lack of time at his disposal as he attempts to nurse an injury-plagued squad through his first Christmas in English football.
I can’t prepare my team like I have to prepare
United have just 43 hours between their 3-1 victory over Newcastle United on Boxing Day and their Sunday visit to Tottenham Hotspur, which kicks off at lunch time.
It is a piece of fixture scheduling that clearly has not impressed the former Dutch national team manager, who said: “I can’t prepare my team like I have to prepare.
“We have unit meetings, we have team meetings, we have a training session, 11 against 11, simulating the opponents. We can’t do that now. We have to play within 48 hours.
“In Uefa and in Fifa it is forbidden to play within 48 hours, but it is England, so it’s different!
“I changed [Radamel] Falcao and I changed [Michael] Carrick for that reason, so we will have to wait and see how they recover because all the players now have to go to recover and eat properly.
“Then your body can recover better. Tomorrow [Saturday], they have free time and rest because recovery is much more important than a training session now.”
