his team to put in a perfect performance against
league leaders Chelsea on Saturday.
Van Gaal's men have moved to within eight
points of the Barclays Premier League leaders
after six successive wins that included a
thumping 4-2 win over Manchester City last
Sunday.
United needed a 94th-minute equaliser to scrape
a draw against Chelsea in October put van Gaal
feels recent performances and results show the
team are finally understanding his football
philosophy.
"We are progressing and playing more like a
team," the United manager said.
"There is more balance. I do believe that we can
play very well but we haven't played very well for
90 minutes.
"First we have to play 90 minutes very well.
Against City we didn't manage.
"It's because they know why they have to play in
a certain way," he said.
"You are capable but unconscious and I want
them to be capable and conscious. Then, at the
end, they are unconscious-capable, that they are
doing it from their stomach.
"Now we have reached the point they're doing it
as a team, not as an individual because football
is a team sport, so that is the difference."
The Dutchman has reservations about United's
ability to beat teams that are physically bigger
than them, and that might be something that
Chelsea, with the aerial threat from John Terry,
Gary Cahill, Branislav Ivanovic and
Nemanja Matic, put to the test at Stamford
Bridge on Saturday.
"We have a big deficit in height," he said.
"When you speak with a basketball coach one or
two centimetres is very important.
"In football it is the same because a third or
quarter of the goals come from set-plays."
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