Van Gaal: Draw with Newcastle feels like defeat
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal wasn't pleased with his side's performance in Tuesday's 3-3 draw at Newcastle, despite the attacking football on display.
United had built a 2-0 lead towards the end of the first half, but a goal from Georginio Wijnaldum brought the hosts back into the match before the interval, and a penalty from Aleksandar Mitrovic levelled the score.
Wayne Rooney launched what looked to be the winner in the 79th minute, only to see Paul Dummett strike a last-minute equaliser.
"We have given it away. I have told that to my players," said Van Gaal afterwards. "We could have scored six goals easily here and we did not. If we had, it would have been three successive wins at the start of the year going into Liverpool.
"It is not so interesting to create chances. In every press conference I say you have to score one more goal than the opponent."
Both Van Gaal and Rooney agree that the result "feels like a defeat." That United was unable to kill off the game bothered Rooney in particular, as the 30-year-old put in one of his best shifts of the season. He has scored three times in his last two Premier League matches - more than he had in the previous 23 combined. So Rooney was left balancing the pride of his personal revival with his club's lack thereof.
"After scoring three good goals, it was maybe a lack of concentration - not staying with runners for the third - and that is disappointing," said Rooney. "If you take a two-goal lead, we should be taking all three points and killing the game off. We didn’t take all our chances and we have been punished for it.
"We always want to try and play entertaining attacking football. That is what we work on and try and do, and hopefully we can come up with more solutions."
The overwhelming criticism of this team has been about its dearth of goals. United only managed to score twice in the Premier League in December, posting no wins.
Paul Scholes suggested after a narrow 1-0 win over third-tier Sheffield United in the FA Cup that his former club had simply grown bored of life under Van Gaal, but this game made the ex-United midfielder feel "loads better."
He told BT Sport: "To go watch a Manchester United team, whether you're home or away, it's entertainment, it's goals, and tonight that was like watching a Manchester United team. OK, they didn't win, but they should have won.
"I expect positive play from Manchester United all the time, whether it's home or away. Sometimes it's a little bit easier to do it away from home. Now they have to transfer this type of form to Old Trafford."