Louis Van Gaal calls for calm ahead of fiery United-Liverpool clash

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal urged his players to keep their cool against fierce rivals Liverpool on Sunday as he dampened down suggestions goalkeeper David de Gea would move to Real Madrid this month.

The fixture between the two giants is always one of the high points of the Premier League season and has seen more than its fair share of red cards over the years, with former United defender Nemanja Vidic managing to collect four himself in a six-year spell.

Despite neither side being in the hunt for the title at present, Sunday’s match at Anfield is likely to be a fiery affair with Van Gaal in need of a win to keep the pressure off his position and to maintain a challenge for a top-four finish.

A victory for Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp in his first game against United, meanwhile, would further endear him to the Reds’ supporters.

Nevertheless, Van Gaal will warn his team to avoid the kind of emotion that saw Liverpool great Steven Gerrard sent off less than a minute after coming on as a substitute in his final appearance in the fixture last March.

Van Gaal, acknowledging this is the biggest game on the calendar for United, said Friday: “That’s how the fans are seeing that and I feel it also.