Much more of this and Louis van Gaal will be asking Manchester United to send his team on long pre-season tours every summer.
Just a day after bemoaning the fact that his club’s busy schedule was threatening to disrupt his players’ preparations for the new season, the new United manager watched his team stroll through their opening tour game against a lamentable LA Galaxy at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
This is an iconic American stadium, which hosted the 1994 World Cup final, and United produced a clinical performance with which to grace it.
Watching them sweep Galaxy aside, it was hard to believe that it is the American team who are in the middle of their season and United who are supposed to be looking for form and fitness under their new manager.
In fact the only problem the English side had all night was actually getting to the stadium. Despite the presence of a police escort, United’s team bus took more than two hours to reach Pasadena from their hotel in Beverly Hills, meaning that at one stage the kick-off was in danger of being put back.
In the end, though, everything started on time and the night subsequently ran like clockwork for United who eased to victory through two first half goals from Wayne Rooney, one from Danny Welbeck, two goals for half-time substitute Reece Jones followed by two late strikes from Ashley Young.