Manchester United vs. Newcastle: Louis Van Gaal's Satisfaction at Odds with Fans

In Louis van Gaal's press conference after Manchester United vs. Newcastle, he expressed his satisfaction with the performance.

"I am satisfied with the performance, but not, of course, with the result," he said

"We made a lot of chances and we only gave two chances away, but you don't reward yourself [for creating those chances] and that's a big pity, at home to lose two points."

He later added "Against Tottenham Hotspur I was not truly satisfied by the performance, but the result is much better. The same against Aston Villa."

His stated satisfaction about the performance against Newcastle, though, was not shared by many of the watching faithful. Social media proliferated with complaints about United's style of football and lack of cutting edge.

But it was not just the loud and angry echo chamber of Twitter wherein discontent could be found.

It started during the game, the frustrated cry of "Attack! Attack! Attack, attack, attack!" emerged from a relatively quiet Stretford End. Ironically, the chant was usually heard when United were in the ascendancy—no surprise given they were in the ascendancy for most of the game.

The chant came when United were attacking. Arguably, what the Stretford End really meant was "Attack differently." Van Gaal's football is an infinitely patient beast. The Old Trafford crowd are getting impatient.

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After the game, chatting with fans around the ground it was clear that the frustration being vented on Twitter was shared by many of those at the game. From those I spoke with came a near-universal view that a new striker was needed. 

Wayne Rooney was a little better today than he had been against Aston Villa, certainly—his two shots on target, per WhoScored.com, were an example of that. However, if his performance was considered satisfactory, then the bar has dropped even lower than many feared.

Van Gaal was asked whether he was concerned about United's lack of goals—just two in three Premier League games so far:

"We were three times the better team, so my worries are we have to dominate the opponent—we did it today, we did it against Aston Villa and we did it against Tottenham Hotspur, and I think against Tottenham Hotspur it was less. But against Aston Villa we dominated the game, today we dominated the game, against [Club] Brugge we dominated the game."

"In preparation we dominated against Barcelona, we dominated against San Jose Earthquakes and Club America, only Paris Saint-Germain we didn't dominate. So, it is not a bad squad."

In truth, much of what Van Gaal says is absolutely correct—although he may be a tad generous in his assessment of United's dominance against Barcelona. United's defensive structure and stability is unrecognisable from last season. When United played, say, Everton at home, they were reliant on super heroics from David De Gea to hold onto the three points.

Sergio Romero has been under no such pressure.

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United's players all look as if they understand the system, and what is expected of them, in a way that was not the case in the opening months of last season.

Thinking back to the collapse against Leicester City, the opening-day defeat against Swansea City and backs-to-the-wall injury-ravaged performances against West Ham United and Everton is an unsettling reminder of just how long it took United to get going last season.

But defensive solidity will never be enough for United's support, raised on an expectation of attacking football. Admittedly, rose-tinted spectacles can cloud the memory, but even in Sir Alex Ferguson's functionality-first later years, United occasionally took off the handbrake.

However, in declaring himself "satisfied" with the performance on the basis of United's relatively sterile domination, he proves himself out of step with what will probably be the majority of fans. For fans, relatively dull football has to be justified by three eventual points.

Of course, it is very early in the season. Van Gaal's work-in-progress is clearly coming along, especially defensively. The transfer window is still open and United are still being linked with the great and the good of world football—for example Gareth Bale, per Kevin Palmer of the Sunday World.

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Even if they do not bring in new talent, the chance remains that Rooney, for example, could rediscover some form. Memphis Depay had a relatively poor game, with Van Gaal saying, "Today he made not always the best choice, but that is also a characteristic of a young player, and it is not so easy in the Premier League."

He will improve, and the game against Club Brugge on Tuesday demonstrated that he is well able to show his talent at Old Trafford.

United have such an enormous fanbase that there will always be people on the fringes calling for dramatic change. There is, though, no severe groundswell of strong anti-Van Gaal feeling, though pockets most certainly exist (as a cursory search through comments on Bleacher Report, Twitter or United forums will demonstrate).

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What is certain, though, is that even patient, fair-minded United fans want better from their side than the 0-0 against Newcastle.

Van Gaal may have been "satisfied" and obviously has a clearer vision of "the process" than those watching on. However, those watching on are certainly not yet satisfied.

They hope for much better to come.

All quotations obtained firsthand.