Van Gaal Could Rotate At Carrow Road

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal says squad rotation is a possibility as he plans for two Barclays Premier League away matches in the space of four days, with the Emirates FA Cup final also to come later this month.

Keeping his cards close to his chest, the boss told MUTV he has options for the first trip on the horizon - Norwich City on Saturday - even though Marouane Fellaini will now be suspended for that game as well as West Ham in midweek and the final league match at home to Bournemouth on Sunday 15 May.

With almost a fully fit squad at his disposal, Van Gaal said fatigue, rather than fitness, will be the key factor when selecting his side to take on the relegation-threatened Canaries this weekend.

"We have to assess the tiredness of the players because there’s an overload of matches, so maybe I have to rotate," the manager commented in his exclusive MUTV interview.

"Fellaini is suspended so I will have to change my line-up. Every week you have something that you don’t like, but I think we can manage."

Van Gaal admitted his preference is to stick with the same team where possible. “When I can, I shall do it always, in every club I have done that.

"In the Premier League it is more difficult because of the overload of the matches, we have to play more matches than in Spain or Germany, so I have to rotate sometimes, but also because of injuries or suspensions."

The manager feels the settled side and reduction in injuries has helped United's performances to improve at this crucial point of the season. “Of course, that’s the benefit of the situation now. I have that at this moment, but in the month of December, I didn’t have that.

“That’s also fantastic for the players because they have a lot of chances and ability as a team," he added.

"We have to win our matches because otherwise we cannot be in the first four - that’s the pressure that we have. We have to fight until the end, and then we have still a title [trophy] to win."