Victory at Chelsea on Sunday would put Manchester United back in Premier League title contention, manager Louis van Gaal said on Friday as the former champions were again linked with Jose Mourinho. Fifth-placed United are 10 points behind leaders Leicester City with 14 games remaining and the Dutchman, buoyed by a 3-0 home victory over Stoke City last weekend, said his side should not be counted out. United finally produced some much-needed swagger at Old Trafford to give Van Gaal breathing space as his future continues to be the subject of media speculation. "The competition is still not finished," Van Gaal told reporters on Friday.
Chelsea will have to be wary of the danger posed by the in-form Marouane Fellaini.
Chelsea regained their six-point lead over Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table and took a step closer to the title thanks to a hard-fought 3-2 victory at Hull City on Sunday.
Cesc Fabregas was "pissed off" with Spain teammate Sergio Ramos for raising doubts about his commitment to the national team but said the pair had buried the hatchet.
After switching to a new-look formation that sparkled against Queens Park Rangers last weekend, a diamond may just be Louis van Gaal's new best friend as the Manchester United boss looks set to continue with it against Leicester City on Sunday.
'It's very difficult to play football in these circumstances within 48 hours. It's amazing for the fans around the world, everybody has the Premier League, I'm more than happy to do that but it's very hard for the players'
Under-fire manager Louis van Gaal said he would not quit after Manchester United extended their run without a victory to eight games in all competitions with a 0-0 draw with champions Chelsea in the Premier League on Monday.
Manchester United's insistence on playing possession football under manager Louis van Gaal means they take far more passes for every shot than any other Premier League team, statistics released on Monday showed.
Manchester United found a home grown solution to their goalscoring problems in the shape of Jesse Lingard as the 22-year-old celebrated his first Premier League start by breaking an Old Trafford stalemate on Saturday.
Louis van Gaal wants to recruit a new galactico match-winner for Manchester United in a bid to fulfil his ambition of bringing another Premier League title to Old Trafford before he walks away from the club in two years.
Manchester United emerged from the transfer window with a rich icing and the brightest of cherries to decorate their cake but the suspicion remains that the team's base may crumble under pressure.
The Premier League bursts back into life after the international break.
Louis van Gaal's carrot and stick approach worked wonders on Friday as his rapidly-improving Manchester United beat Newcastle United 3-1 to cement third spot in the Premier League.
Mourinho has a reputation for creating a siege mentality at the clubs he manages, and he has used the injury crisis -- which saw top scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic and key defender Marcos Rojo suffer serious knee injuries last week - to create a spirit of resistance amongst his current squad.
Images from Saturday's matches in the Premier League.
Wayne Rooney scored two first half goals to help send Manchester United to a 4-1 win over a spirited Aston Villa on Saturday, temporarily lifting the gloom surrounding David Moyes' dismal first term in charge.
Jose Mourinho has won a trophy every season of his top flight career and finds it "unacceptable" to contemplate finishing his comeback season with Chelsea empty handed.
Images from the FA Cup matches played on Saturday
Marcus Rashford scored twice as holders Manchester United brushed aside second-tier Burton Albion 4-1 at Old Trafford to reach the fourth round of the League Cup on Wednesday.
- 'The match epitomised our season really' - 'Today we were the better side in the first half but you can't concede the goals we did'
Results and images from the English Premier League matches played on Saturday.
United youth product Gomes, 18, struck after Spurs' Lucas Moura cancelled out Anthony Martial's first-half opener and gave the 20-time Premier League champions another victory after they beat Perth Glory, Leeds United and Inter Milan.
Jose Mourinho's reshaped Manchester United destroyed Premier League champions Leicester City 4-1 with a performance that thrilled Old Trafford on Saturday and justified his decision to leave out Wayne Rooney. The shake-up seemed to liberate Paul Pogba who led the way with a polished display, heading his first goal for the club on 42 minutes and starting the clever move that led to Juan Mata firing home United's second after 37 minutes.
French teenager Anthony Martial, having scored as a substitute on his Premier League debut in Manchester United's last game, added two more goals to earn his team a 3-2 win at Southampton on Sunday.
Manchester United's 100 per cent start to the Premier League season ended when they were held to a goalless draw against Newcastle United at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Manchester City beat Swansea 3-1 to make it a perfect 10 victories under Pep Guardiola, including six in the Premier League, as they recorded their best start to a top-flight campaign. City's victory was the perfect riposte to the Spaniard's old rival Jose Mourinho, who earlier saw his remodelled Manchester United sparkle without the dropped Wayne Rooney, thumping Premier League champions Leicester City 4-1. On a day of goals, both Manchester sides were outscored by Liverpool, who crushed Hull City 5-1 to take their tally to 24 in the past eight games.
With 13 points from the last 15 available, striker Fernando Torres looking rejuvenated, options all across the pitch and an empty treatment room, Chelsea are clearly hitting their stride.
Danny Rose scored a second-half equaliser to cancel out James Milner's penalty as Tottenham Hotspur came from behind to draw 1-1 with Liverpool at White Hart Lane on Saturday.
IMAGES from the English Premier League match played between Manchester United and Liverpool at Old Trafford on Saturday
World champions Spain held on for a 2-1 win over Haiti in a friendly on Saturday as they warmed up for this month's Confederations Cup.
The difference in fortunes since Liverpool won 3-0 away to Manchester United in March was illustrated when Louis Van Gaal's team reversed that scoreline on Sunday.
Louis Van Gaal said it would take him three years to transform Manchester United into a potential title-winning team when he became manager last summer, but judged by Sunday's loss to Southampton, he might have to wait a lot longer than that.
Stevan Jovetic and Jesus Navas scored their first goals for ManchesterCity who avenged last season's shock FA Cup final defeat by Wigan Athletic with a 5-0 victory in the League Cup third round on Tuesday.
Rediff.com brings a preview of the main matches coming up this weekend in the English Premier League.
Manchester United are finally beginning to look like their old selves.
Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez secured victory over nine-man Atletico Madrid in La Liga's top of the table clash, while Juventus won a 12th straight Serie A game to stay hot on the heels of leaders Napoli.
Manchester United replaced Manchester City as Premier League leaders with Wayne Rooney ending an 11-match run without a league goal in his side's comfortable 3-0 win over Sunderland at Old Trafford on Saturday.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Tuesday
What a difference an international break makes. Before Europe's top domestic leagues were interrupted by players jetting off around the world to play for their countries, Manchester United's supposed new dawn under Louis van Gaal was obscured by dark clouds.
The 10-year agreement announced on Monday is a world record for a soccer club and is more than double the 31 million pounds-a-year deal Adidas was reported to have with Spanish side Real Madrid, previously the biggest deal.
