Van Gaal on brink as tepid United slump at Stoke

Louis van Gaal hinted he could vacate the Manchester United hot seat after Stoke City swatted aside his timid team 2-0 on Saturday.

Dutchman Van Gaal has now overseen a seven-match winless run in which United have been eliminated from the Champions League and fallen out of the Premier League’s top four with successive defeats by Bournemouth, Norwich City and Stoke.

United, down to sixth in the Premier League, host champions Chelsea on Monday and few would be shocked if Van Gaal was no longer in charge.

The 20-times English champions have long been associated with swashbuckling attacking football but, apart from a brief flurry after the break when Van Gaal brought captain Wayne Rooney off the bench having omitted him for “tactical reasons”, they were woefully short.