Louis van Gaal 'not shocked' by Manchester United's 4-0 defeat to MK Dons

Even the most pessimistic Manchester United supporter had to be surprised by the club's 4-0 loss to League One side Milton Keynes Dons in the Capital One Cup on Tuesday.

The loss was one of the most humiliating defeats in United's recent history, and it could have been worse as MK Dons missed a number of chances and were denied an obvious penalty. Sure, the Red Devils' Premier League campaign is off to a brutal start and the team is plagued by injuries, but 4-0 is a scoreline that hardly anyone could have foreseen. 

Except for Louis van Gaal, whose lack of surprise is perhaps more shocking than the result itself.

"Of course I'm disappointed, but I can analyse this," Van Gaal  said after the match. "I am not shocked because I know what can happen, and I think also that Milton Keynes played very well, very aggressively, and they had also a little bit of luck."

And, of course, Van Gaal delivered a classic call for patience, something which sounds all too familiar following the David Moyes debacle.

"It's very difficult when you start as manager in the Premier League with a home match loss [to Swansea] and after that a draw [with Sunderland] and then lose a cup match, then for the fans it is very difficult to believe, still believe, in the philosophy of Louis van Gaal. But you have to do that, you have to do that, because I am here to build a new team, and a new team is not built in one month."

Angel di Maria, who just signed a five-year deal with United that will pay him around £200,000 per week, can't step onto the pitch at Old Trafford soon enough. The club's problems at the back were glaring, and one has to imagine that Van Gaal will look to bring in a defender or two before the transfer window closes on Sept. 1.