Club Brugge Should Hold No Terrors for Louis van Gaal's Manchester United

Given the uncertainty surrounding Louis van Gaal's Manchester United at the moment, they cannot afford to take their Champions League play-off clash with Club Brugge too lightly. 

However, United have managed to avoid some of the bigger names they could have faced and, crucially, avoided a long and difficult early-season trip to Moscow.

United are somewhat in flux. Angel Di Maria's move to Paris Saint-Germain has been confirmed, per the club's official Twitter account. And Van Gaal has revealed that David De Gea will not start against Tottenham Hotspur on the opening day of the season, per BBC Sport.

While central midfield, right-back and attacking midfield have been strengthened over the summer, concerns remain about the heart of United's defence—in addition to the goalkeeping issue.

It is in that context, then, the Red Devils face Club Brugge. It is United's weaknesses rather than Club Brugge's strengths that are the key issue here.

It has been a difficult decade for the Blauw-Zwart.

They are managed by Michel Preud'homme, the former Belgium international, who has been in charge since 2013. He is looking to end an uncharacteristic decade without a league title—their longest spell without being crowned champions of Belgium since 1972.

They managed to top the regular-season table in 2014/15 but lost out in the Championship Playoff to Gent—who qualified directly for the Champions League group stage.

Francois Walschaerts/Associated Press

According to Belgium and Netherlands football specialist BeNeFoot, via Twitter, Club Brugge have had a "slow start to the season" but are "getting better."

BeNeFoot also pointed out a number of key players are struggling for fitness. These included the injured goalscoring midfielder Lior Refaelov, left winger Jose Izquierdo and their vice-captain, Masia graduate Victor Vazquez.

They have been Europa League mainstays for the past few seasons, but last season's quarter-final run was their best performance in some time. The 1970s represented their golden era in European competition, as they finished as losing finalists to Liverpool in both the 1976 UEFA Cup final and 1978 European Cup final.

Preud'homme's side have enjoyed some recent success, given their European endeavours and Belgian Cup win last season. They are also ahead of United in terms of preparation—they are two matches into their domestic season and had to beat Panathinaikos to get to this stage of the Champions League.

Francois Walschaerts/Associated Press

They have got off to a stuttering start. They lost their season-opener and lost in Greece. Things have picked up since, and they have enjoyed two 3-0 home wins on the bounce, enough to right the ship domestically and earn a tie with United for a place in the Champions League group stage.

United have played Brugge once before, a reserve-team friendly in 2013. The first team will be hoping to match the reserves' success in that game, which they won 1-0.

United have two league games before they begin their European campaign and a home game in between the two legs of the Brugge tie. Those domestic games will be crucial to building match rhythm and confidence.

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By the time the tie rolls around, the Red Devils may have added to their squad. Links with Sergio Ramos are still being made, per Samuel Luckhurst in the Manchester Evening News. That report also mentions ongoing discussions with Barcelona over forward Pedro Rodriguez.

The arrival of either of those players would add to the sense United should simply have too much for Club Brugge. However, even over two legs, it is still cup football, and United cannot afford to let their off-pitch uncertainty affect their on-pitch form.

Making it past this tie is an important step for United. They will be pleased to have been drawn against the Belgians but cannot afford to be too happy. They should have enough quality to advance, but complacency here could be a disaster for Van Gaal and United.