A Reason For United To Keep LVG

Good news for Manchester United fans - the last time a Louis van Gaal side finished outside of the top four they went on to win the league the next season.

The Dutchman has been under mounting pressure this season and a fifth-place finish in the Premier League has only served to increase speculation he could be on his way out of Old Trafford this summer, regardless of Saturday's FA Cup final result.

With no Champions League football to look forward to next year, some fans booed Van Gaal at the end of Tuesday's 3-1 home win over Bournemouth.

However, there is a positive omen from Van Gaal's past.

Van Gaal has only finished outside of the top four once before as a manager. It happened during his tenure as AZ Alkmaar boss in the Netherlands.

After a short spell at Ajax as technical director, Van Gaal joined AZ in July 2005 and promptly led the club to a second-place finish in the Eredivisie. That was followed by a third-place finish in 2006/07 but Van Gaal's third campaign in charge did not go as well.

AZ slumped to 11th in the Netherlands' top flight and at the end of the season Van Gaal announced he would be stepping down as manager. However, following a call from the players for him to continue, Van Gaal stayed on - and shocked Dutch football with a remarkable title triumph.

Using a counter-attacking approach, AZ went on a club-record 28-game unbeaten run and became the first team outside of the Netherlands' Big Three - Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord - to win the title in 28 years.

With current Manchester United 'keeper Sergio Romero in goal, AZ registered the best defensive record, conceding just 22 goals in 34 games, and, with the help of Eredivisie top scorer Mounir El Hamdaoui, found the net more times than any other side, with the exception of Ajax.

"For me, personally, this championship will be my greatest little masterpiece," Van Gaal said.

The manager's next step was to join Bayern Munich, where he won a league and cup double in his first season.

While a Manchester United Premier League title win in 2016/17 currently seems unlikely - Sky Bet have them as 8/1 sixth favourites - Van Gaal will hope the club's fans and board keep the faith and give him the chance to pull off one more "masterpiece".

Credit: Skysports.com