Louis van Gaal Reportedly Dictates Order in Which Manchester United Stars Lunch

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal reportedly dictates the order in which his players get their lunch at the Red Devils' Carrington training facility.

Well known for his attention to even the most minute detail, a source for the Daily Mail has revealed that Van Gaal likes to keep his players on their toes by regularly changing the order in which they receive their meals, per MailOnline's Mike Keegan: 

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The manager likes to mix it up and choose the order of who goes up for their food. He does it on a table by table basis and the players are trying to figure out the logic of it. 

You might think it is done on who he thinks has performed the best in training but they just don't know. It keeps them on their toes.

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Van Gaal's meticulous preparations and exacting training methods have caused some consternation at Old Trafford since he took over the top job at Old Trafford in the summer of 2014.

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Most recently he revealed that Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick had come to him to address concerns about a "flat" dressing room, per Stuart Mathieson in the Manchester Evening News.

Per Sky Sports, he has made a number of changes to the training complex since his arrival—installing floodlights, planting trees, relaying the pitch—and thus the latest news of his lunch demands comes as little surprise.

And while the Red Devils cannot be said to be back performing at their Alex Ferguson-era best, they are now back at the top of the Premier League table for the first time in over two years, per MailOnline Sport:

They are also back in the Champions League following a season-long absence after their seventh-placed Premier League finish under David Moyes in 2013-14.

While they lost their opening group game to PSV Eindhoven, Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe is backing Van Gaal's side to prevail against Wolfsburg at Old Trafford on Wednesday:

While it is undoubtedly unnerving and irregular that Van Gaal dictates the order in which his players receive their lunch—in a somewhat schoolmasterly fashion—if it is having any benefit on the team's training, it is surely worth it. 

Per Keegan, summer-signing Bastian Schweinsteiger believes "team spirit" is United's biggest strength, a ringing endorsement of the Dutch manager's methods.

Van Gaal was brought in to restore United to their former glory, and while they are not there yet, the return to the top of the Premier League suggests they are edging closer.

A victory against Wolfsburg is essential on Wednesday to allay fears of a struggling group stage in the Champions League, but their consistency so far this season suggests they should have enough to down the German side.