Boss Against Shaw Playing For England U21s

Louis van Gaal has confirmed he would prefer Manchester United defender Luke Shaw not to feature in this summer’s European Under-21 Championship with England due to his recent problems with injury.

Three Lions manager Gareth Southgate will name his squad for the competition in Czech Republic on Wednesday and 20-year-old Shaw is eligible to be involved.

But van Gaal is keen for the promising left-back to enjoy a well-earned rest after suffering a handful of niggling injuries during his debut season at Old Trafford. Of course, Shaw spent last summer representing the England seniors at the World Cup in Brazil.

After ruling Shaw out of Sunday's match with Arsenal, the boss was quizzed on the idea of him playing for England this summer: “I don't think so because when he is not playing for United, he cannot play for other teams either. That extends to the summer," said van Gaal.

"He needs that rest I think because he has over-crossed his limits this season, and that's why. He’s 19-years-old - what do you expect? We have to protect him and I hope that the coach of the Under-21s [Gareth Southgate] is understanding of that reason.”

United will be without Shaw and Wayne Rooney against Arsenal, as well as Michael Carrick and Rafael. While it's frustrating to have so many key players injured, van Gaal believes his problems were much worse in the first half of the campaign.

“You cannot avoid injuries like Rooney and Shaw because football is with physical resistance and also a little bit of luck, or you are unlucky maybe," he added. "In the second part of the season, I am satisfied. We have had in the first part of the season an average of 10 injuries a week and I could never line up the same team, so I'm happy with that now.”