Louis van Gaal could be given another season at Manchester United

Does Louis van Gaal's involvement in Manchester United's upcoming pre-season tour suggest he'll be allowed to see out his contract at Old Trafford?

There was some interesting speculation posted on Sky Sports' website on Sunday, which noted Louis van Gaal's involvement in the planning of Manchester United's upcoming pre-season tour. According to the Sunday People's Steve Bates, van Gaal has "pulled rank in reducing United's planned tour of China," having been dissatisfied in the past with the length of the Reds' summer schedule. Speaking on the Sunday Supplement, Bates said:

"The amount of influence Van Gaal has had on the tour is astonishing considering we were led to believe he was a dead man walking. For the club to allow him to have that level of influence on how they structure their summer tour to China it is at odds with where we view Van Gaal and his future.

"On Friday, Van Gaal revealed he had won a significant battle with the commercial arm of United, who are very powerful in bringing in revenue and sponsorship. These tours are a big part of what they do. Van Gaal eluded that the 'suits' wanted a longer tour - two weeks, maybe three or four games - and he has beaten them down to effectively two games against Borussia Dortmund and Man City in Shanghai and Beijing over an eight-day period."

Whether we should trust a man who clearly doesn't know what 'eluded' means, I'll leave up to you. However, there's no doubting that this is quite an interesting development, and may well suggest that van Gaal will be given another season. But let's hope not.