LVG: De Gea 'Not Eager To Play' Against Tottenham

Louis van Gaal claims goalkeeper David de Gea told one of his coaches he was not keen on playing in Manchester United's season opener.

For the second successive week, the Spain international has not been included in United's match-day squad following his omission in the 1-0 Premier League win against Tottenham last Saturday.

The 24-year-old will not feature against Aston Villa on Friday night, live on Sky Sports 1, because Van Gaal is convinced he is still not in the right frame of mind to play due to Real Madrid's interest in signing him.

In a new twist, Van Gaal revealed during an odd exchange on Thursday that De Gea had told his goalkeeping coach Frans Hoek he was not fully focused on the game against Spurs.

The Dutchman gave his normal press conference at Carrington and then stunned the room by wandering over and sitting next to a journalist who had earlier questioned him.

Van Gaal then offered to divulge information about De Gea and being dropped for the first game of the Premier League.

Insisting his comments should be regarded as on the record, Van Gaal said: "We've talked with him (De Gea), he was fully agreed with our decision.

"I have one assistant coach (Albert Stuivenberg) and another assistant coach (Marcel Bout) so we speak about that kind of thing. We have a goalkeeping coach, Frans Hoek, I'm not doing everything alone.

"Frans Hoek, he has a meeting with David de Gea and he asks him, 'Do you want to play?'."

When the reporter asked about the 'keeper's reply, Van Gaal said it was: "No."

Van Gaal added: "Then I have to take the decision. It is a process. We had been observing him in preparation, he was not so good, he was not the same David de Gea as before, he was my best player last season. According to the fans, he was the best of the last two years."

A United official sought to clarify what had been said by insisting Van Gaal meant De Gea was merely "not eager to play" against Tottenham because of the speculation surrounding his future.

The saga is proving to be a drawn-out episode for United, who continue to insist they will not sell their goalkeeper to Madrid unless they get Sergio Ramos or a fee of over £32.6m in return.

When asked earlier if he had seen an improvement in De Gea's focus, Van Gaal said: "There is no difference. The transfer period is still open and he has still the same problems."

Sergio Romero therefore looks set to start at Villa Park on Friday - and he may hold on to the gloves after the transfer window, even if De Gea stays.

"That depends on Romero also and his form," Van Gaal replied, when asked what De Gea's situation would be if he stayed at United. "It is always like that."

Van Gaal remains upbeat on the club's strikeforce despite the exit of Robin van Persie and Radamel Falcao. He said Wayne Rooney was capable of scoring over 20 goals, adding that Javier Hernandez had accepted his role as back-up and would not leave.

Credit: Skysports.com