Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has admitted that he cannot know what reception he will receive when his side return to Old Trafford to face Stoke City on Tuesday.
United were booed off following their most recent home game, a 1-0 defeat by Southampton last weekend, which prompted media speculation about Van Gaal’s position.
His team won 3-1 at second-tier Derby County on Friday to reach the FA Cup fifth round, but Van Gaal conceded afterwards that it may not have been enough to mollify supporters frustrated by recent performances.
“I’m not a stupid man. I’m an intelligent man and I cannot predict the atmosphere,” he told reporters.
“I hope that we can give the same level of performance as today (Friday), but we have to play Stoke City. It’s another opponent.
“But it’s not so important that they yell at me. It’s more that they are supporting the players because that’s the most important thing. The players have the most difficult task.
“They have to give a result at that hour, with that resistance, and there are no excuses. They have to support the fans.
“When I am not so popular anymore, OK. It’s also not the first time that that happens with me. But I can survive.”
Van Gaal has described reports that he offered to step down after the Southampton defeat as “awful and horrible” and protested that he has been “sacked” by the media three times already this season.
But with United having won only four of their last 14 matches, all the while playing some turgid football, he is aware that another misstep on Tuesday will see his position called into question again.
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