Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has revealed why he brought Angel di Maria off at half-time against Sunderland today.
Gus Poyet's men put up stiff resistance against the Red Devils at Old Trafford, restricting them to no goals in the opening 45 minutes as both sides headed off locked at 0-0.
Van Gaal then raised eyebrows by bringing on Adnan Januzaj for British record signing Di Maria at the break as he tried to change the game.
Manchester United scored twice in the second period, the first a Wayne Rooney penalty, while a Sunderland sending off at the same time had the Black Cats claiming mistaken identity; Wes Brown was sent off when it appeared John O'Shea committed the foul on Radamel Falcao.
Rooney then wrapped up the win by scoring again in the 84th minute. But Van Gaal was quickly asked after the match why he brought Di Maria off.
relatedNewsStory
"I want to win. I have to observe and analyse", he told a press conference.
"We were better in the second half so I cannot say it was the wrong decision.
"We have to give him [Di Maria] time to adapt and lift his confidence again.
"He’s a human being and makes mistakes like everyone else."
Manchester United now sit third in the Premier League table on 50 points from 27 games.
Like betting on football? Check out our sister site Inside Bet. Free bet offers, betting tips, betting facts. Visit Inside Bet.
