Louis Van Gaal Has Valid Point on Christmas Fixtures, but Tradition Will Win Out

Louis van Gaal isn't the first manager to complain about English football's packed fixture list over Christmas and New Year. He won't be the last, either.

You can see why he's not happy. Five games in 15 days is a lot for players expected to chase, press and sprint for 90 minutes. And it's not easy for them to leave their families on Christmas Day to head into training, or be in bed for 11 p.m. on New Year's Eve while everyone else is out celebrating.

In quotes carried by the Manchester Evening News, the Dutchman didn't hold back.

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I’m not happy because I do not agree with that (the December fixture list). I cannot change that but I don’t think it’s good for the football players that they play within two days another match. In the December months, it shall be like that.

We also have families. I don’t think it is good for players, neither for the families. I also have a wife and kids and grandchildren and I cannot see them this Christmas. But, I want to work in the Premier League so I have to adapt and I shall adapt.

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United start their Christmas programme at Aston Villa on December 20. Newcastle visit Old Trafford on Boxing Day before they travel to Tottenham two days later on December 28. They play Stoke at the Britannia Stadium on January 1 and have an FA Cup third-round tie on the weekend of January 3.

Van Gaal will be fearing more injuries. He's already suffered more than most this season, and, four months into his time at Old Trafford, hasn't yet had a chance to pick from a fully fit squad. 

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He's at a stage of his reign where he values time on the training ground, trying to "teach in the brain as well as the legs" as he likes to put it. But there's not much time for that when you're playing every three days.

Van Gaal has a point that the Premier League's festive fixture list isn't ideal for players. But then, it's not all about the players. 

The Boxing Day and New Year's Day games are two the fans look out for when the fixture list is released. Some families plan their whole Christmas and New Year around them.

It's why tradition will always win out over the concerns of managers.

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In the same press conference Van Gaal voiced his opinion about the winter schedule, the Dutchman also revealed why he was so keen to work in England. After managing in Holland, Spain and Germany, he said it was the fans, specifically the atmosphere in the stadiums, that drew him to the Premier League.

The Christmas fixture list is a big part of that. Something that makes the Premier League special. It's also something Van Gaal knew all about when he agreed to manage in England. 

He might have a point that the busy schedule isn't ideal for players, especially for a United squad that has already been decimated by injuries. But once, just once, the fans have to come first.

Quotes obtained firsthand.