Such is my low regard for the mainstream media in this country, I normally find it hard not to sympathise with anyone under attack from them, especially when it's an employee of United.
The number of times Louis Van Gaal has been 'sacked' according to the press in the last few weeks is certainly worthy of ridicule, yet sympathy will be in short supply among a lot of United fans and, for once, I find myself among them.
He's an experienced manager who, last season, dealt with journalists with a refreshing, if sometimes surprising, honesty and frankness. When United had played badly his post-match comments reflected this and indeed he often seemed as angry as anyone about his team's under-performance, something which generally brought him favour among Reds fans.
Now, however, Van Gaal appears to have retreated into the same kind of defensiveness exhibited by his teams. His analyses of games have become too often reminiscent of those offered by Moyes in his final months at the helm. We were asked to accept that United preventing a League One side like Sheffield United from having any shots on target was somehow worthy of praise, while Saturday's abject display against Southampton was, Van Gaal assured us, a contest between two well-organised sides that the Reds might have been 'lucky' enough to win.
It's hard to imagine that the Van Gaal of last year would have made such observations and equally hard not to greet such remarks with contempt. Sorry Louis, my regard for the British press remains as low as ever, but you really ought to be old and experienced enough both to know better and do better.
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