Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has two matches to save his job at Old Trafford, according to reports.
Increasing unrest
It has been reported by The Telegraph that the Glazer family, club owners and executive vice chairman Ed Woodward have become increasingly uncomfortable with the disquiet among the support.
The pressure on the Dutchman further intensified on Saturday when they suffered their third consecutive defeat with the 2-1 loss to relegation strugglers Norwich City and it is believed that if he loses any of the next two league matches he will be dismissed.
It also been reported that the coach is beginning to lose his players as the discontent among the squad is beginning to grow regarding Van Gaal’s tactics and coaching methods.
Falling behind
United were one of the contenders for the title at the beginning of the season and things started brightly for the Red Devils.
However, they have failed to win in their last six matches which saw them drop out of the Champions League in the group stages and Saturday’s defeat saw them drop out of the top four and nine points behind league leaders Leicester City.
United face stern tests in their next two matches, against Stoke City on Boxing Day and Guus Hiddink’s Chelsea two days later and the fear from the hierarchy is that defeat will leave them in a perilous position in their attempt to get back into the top four.
High concerns
It’s not only the hierarchy that are concerned, but Van Gaal himself admitted after Saturday’s defeat that he was concerned about his position at the club and stated the claim that he would resign if he felt he had lost the support of the players.
Louis van Gaal will start his fight to save his Manchester United job with a trip to Stoke City on Saturday, December 26 with kick-off at 12:45PM BST.