Detroit: Jonny Evans has revealed the full extent of Louis van Gaal’s attention to detail at Manchester United, claiming the new manager has adopted a Big Brother approach to training involving camera surveillance of every movement on the pitch.
Van Gaal, who officially began work as United manager two weeks ago, is attempting to accelerate the team’s adjustment to a 4-3-1-2 formation during the pre-season tour of the United States, which continues against Real Madrid in front of a 109,000 crowd in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Saturday.
The former Holland coach has also introduced changes behind the scenes, from training times to the squad’s dining arrangements and the overhauling of pitches at the club’s Carrington base. But with United ploughing around £3 million into Van Gaal’s planned improvements at Carrington, centre-half Evans admits the biggest surprise has been the cameras that have been positioned alongside the training pitches.
“I think it is a lot more detailed at the training ground now,” he said.
“They have spent thousands on it and a few of the lads have seen HD cameras around the pitch. We have this camera system where he [Van Gaal] can watch us on the pitch. I think a lot of teams use it, but we are looking into it in quite a lot of detail.
“He is saying things like, ‘You should be five yards to the right’ after watching the footage and we are able to see things that are happening live on the pitch. We went through a video recently and I was 10 yards out of position. There are things you are doing on the pitch, and the whole team will be feeling the same, and you are thinking, ‘Am I in the right position?’ Then he will show you in the video and you will know.”
Van Gaal has warned it could take up to three months for his players to become fully comfortable with his methods having introduced new training drills and dispensed with the back four formation that United have used for more than two decades.
“He said the same to us, ‘You will find it hard’,” Evans said. “He said we would find it hard mentally because he wants us all to push ourselves to the limit. That is what it feels like. We are all going to bed and sleeping well anyway. But that is the standard he has set for us. There are a lot of fine details that we all have to stick to, but I think what it does is give everyone a comfort zone because we all know that is the standard.
“It is everything from the clothes you wear to the time you have a meal and everyone eating together.”
At 26, Evans, the Northern Ireland international, admits he must emerge as a senior figure under Van Gaal having been regarded as a young prospect alongside the likes of Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand. With the two long-serving defenders leaving United this summer, Evans faces the dual challenge of adapting to a new system and proving his worth to the new manager, but he insists he is ready to grasp his chance.
“If you look at Nemanja, he didn’t join us until he was 25 or 26,” Evans said. “That’s the same age as me now, but for the last six or seven years it has not been a case of not wanting to step up. The aim is always to be the best that you can. I have benefited from playing with Rio and Nemanja, and Wes Brown before that. I have learnt a lot throughout my career and it is a big time in my career now.
“But as for the new system, people get obsessed with formations, over whether it is a three or a five, but the philosophy stays the same when you are playing out from the back.
“It is just about fine tuning and once you catch on to things, you understand it. It is different, but the good thing is the manager has taken time with us and not just thrown us into a system.”
Twelve months ago, United prepared for a new campaign following another change of manager, with David Moyes replacing Sir Alex Ferguson, and the optimism at that time was similar to that being expressed under Van Gaal.
Moyes was unable to sustain the feel-good factor, with United enduring a nightmare campaign, and Evans admits a determination to right the wrongs of last season.
“Louis van Gaal’s record does demand respect but David Moyes got a lot of respect from the lads and we treated him exactly the same way as when Louis van Gaal came in. I’m not sure why it went wrong. But people are now saying Manchester United can’t win the league, so that is a big motivation to us.”
