Glory, glory Man Utd! Van Gaal finally delivers Old Trafford masterclass

The Red Devils finally turned it on at the Theatre of Dreams, ending a run of 11 games without a first-half goal as well as a long period of lifeless performances

After a performance of vintage Manchester United quality packed with pace, power, energy, urgency and splendid silky football, the only question one can ask is why it took so long for them to turn in such a display. This was exactly what Old Trafford has been waiting for.
Louis van Gaal’s side turned in their best performance of the season and one of the most convincing of the Dutchman’s reign in easily despatching Stoke City at the Theatre of Dreams. It is arguable that they deserved more than a 3-0 scoreline, but after the months of tribulations on their home turf it is a result their fans will not complain about one jot.

This was United's 13th straight win at home against the Potters, but no one was taking anything for granted pre-match after a run of two league wins in two-and-a-half months.
United’s last match in M16 had ended with them booed off after a woeful showing in the 1-0 defeat to Southampton 10 days earlier, but Tuesday’s effort came from the very opposite end of the scale.

On the night the club commemorated the upcoming 58th anniversary of the Munich air tragedy, the display could not have been more fitting a tribute.

 

You could tell it was going to be United’s night when Jesse Lingard headed home in the 14th minute from Cameron Borthwick-Jackson’s low cross. It was the Reds’ first goal in a first half at Old Trafford since September, a period spanning 520 minutes and more than 11 matches.

Anthony Martial finished superbly soon after, then teed up Wayne Rooney for the third shortly after the break.




United supporters will leave Old Trafford shaking their heads in bewilderment though, with this same group of players having spent much of the season turning in lifeless, one-dimensional performances that have bored crowds to tears. As much as they’ll be delighted to finally see some real entertainment from their side, they have every right to wonder why Van Gaal hasn’t been able to get such dynamic displays out of his men until now.
If the victory over Derby County in the FA Cup on Friday was a small step in the right direction, this win was a healthy stride. Every recovery has to start somewhere, and United remain a long way from the finished article thanks to the rigid efforts of the past six months, but this kind of evening shows that United are still capable of thrilling football when they want to be.

Now their supporters will just hope for more of the same over the final three months of the season and that the stale, robotic football of previous months is now a thing of the past.

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