Manchester United vs. Burnley: Louis Van Gaal's Key Quotes from Latest Presser

Louis van Gaal has come out fighting against Sam Allardyce's suggestions that Manchester United decided to "thump it forward and see what they could get" during Sunday's 1-1 draw with West Ham, per BBC Sport.

Van Gaal provided journalists with a sheet of information during Tuesday's press conference ahead of the Red Devils' tie with Burnley, reported by Daniel Taylor of The Guardian:

"

Van Gaal very indignant. Ended up telling us to take it off him. "Copy it and present it to Big Sam." Here is one: pic.twitter.com/kHsc4gjU9s

— Daniel Taylor (@DTguardian) February 10, 2015"

BBC Sport shared additional images:

Sky Sports provided the full comments:   

Former Manchester United star Paul Scholes discussed the situation during an appearance on the Fletch and Sav show on BT Sport, per Aaron Flanagan of the Daily Mirror:

"

Why would you react to a West Ham manager? It’s different if it’s a rival manager like Chelsea or Manchester City's, but at the end of the day you're the Manchester United manager.

I found it all bizarre to be honest with you, as I felt Allardyce's comments were light-hearted in the first place.

[...]

It’s not great to watch, put it that way. I've heard Van Gaal say recently that United can't take risks, but what message does that send to the fans?

It’s all about taking risks as a Manchester United player and having the balls and tenacity to go out and attack the opposition.

"

Alex Shaw of ESPN FC offered his blunt take on the situation:

United fans are likely to cringe at Van Gaal's antics which fall in line with Rafa Benitez's famous "facts" speech from 2009. The ex-Liverpool boss was upset with comments made by former United boss Sir Alex Ferguson when he launched into the much-mocked tirade centred around the Premier League fixture list.

Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

The Old Trafford club are currently embroiled in an exciting battle for Champions League places. Sunday's draw with West Ham could turn out to be an important result at the end of the season, particularly as Van Gaal's side were fortunate to come away with a point. He was happy with the result, per United's official Twitter feed:

Daley Blind's last-minute strike maintained United's grip on fourth. Southampton are just one point ahead, while Manchester City remain five clear in second. Tottenham's 2-1 victory over Arsenal outlines Mauricio Pochettino's side as contenders for a spot in Europe's elite competition, with Spurs now sitting ahead of north London rivals Arsenal in fifth.

Alastair Grant/Associated Press

Just five points separates United from their current position and Liverpool in seventh. Considering Spurs travel to Anfield on Wednesday, the Red Devils now have an excellent opportunity to extend their lead over one of their fellow top-four challengers.

Van Gaal confirmed he will take time to assess the fitness of his players heading into the Burnley match, reported by United:

He was also delighted with Paddy McNair's decision to ink a new deal with the club:

Scott Heppell/Associated Press

Burnley are one point outside the relegation zone, but deservedly took a 1-1 draw off United earlier in the season. Sean Dyche's men have quality firepower in Danny Ings—scorer of eight goals this season, per BBC Sport—but his side have grabbed just one away win in 11 this campaign. A haul of seven points from a possible 33 on the road is a large indicator as to why the Turf Moor club are struggling in 17th.

It will be interesting to see which tactics Van Gaal deploys against Dyche's side. Whether he makes a special effort to avoid long balls remains to be seen, but either way, United are huge favourites to take three points.

Supporters are also unlikely to bemoan the decision to go long against West Ham, a style which eventually led to Blind's goal. Allardyce's comments appear to have irritated Van Gaal, whose decision to continually shake United's formation and tactics up makes him an extremely difficult manager to pigeonhole.