Louis van Gaal tells Manchester United players to imagine beating Stoke City while asleep

Louis van Gaal tells his players to think of the game while they are in bed the previous night

Manchester United manager Louis Van Gaal has been urging his players to think of defeating Stoke City while they are asleep. The Red Devils take on Stoke City at the Brittania Stadium on Thursday and will be looking to maintain their undefeated run and extend it further to 10 games. They are currently 3rd in the table with 36 points from 19 games.

United were held to a 0-0 draw at White Hart Lane last week and Van Gaal said that if his side have to be real contenders for the title, it is up to the players to deliver the results and not depend for favours from other teams.

"You have to always do it by yourself and not depend on results of the opponent," he said.

He added that the players will have to be ready from all aspects and added that they need to have imagined about the game, even before stepping on the field.

"You have to be busy with yourself, with your preparation and the imagination of the game. All the players have to do that -- dream of the game already, you have to play the game already in your bed," the former Barcelona manager said.

He had earlier promised a much improved Manchester United team in 2015.