Louis van Gaal has taken issue with Pep Guardiola’s claim that several of his players were contacted by Manchester United over the summer but preferred to stay at Bayern Munich. The Bayern coach suggested United did not have enough money to do business for his best players, who were not interested in a move to England anyway but Van Gaal says he has yet to be rebuffed by a genuine transfer target.

“Every player I have contacted wants to play for Manchester United,” Van Gaal said. “In spite of the fact that we are not playing in the Champions League this season, the players are still willing to come. It is unbelievable but it is because of the greatness of this club. They all believe in the project we have started now but I will say again that it has only just started. It still needs time.”

Breezily relaxed after picking up his first win of the season against Queens Park Rangers last weekend, Van Gaal proceeded to show off the depth of his knowledge of Leicester City, Sunday’s opponents. “I have analysed them three times,” he said. “I prepare all my matches very thoroughly. I know all about the games they have played already and the game they lost to a minor team [Shrewsbury] in the Capital One Cup. I know everything about the team, about individuals, substitutes, what the atmosphere will be like in the stadium, how they take free-kicks, everything. My staff check all that out and then we send it to the players. Ryan Giggs gives them a presentation, then we simulate our opponents in training.”

It is possibly a good thing Rio Ferdinand is back in London then, for the former United defender has been complaining in his autobiography of getting information overload on opponents from David Moyes. By the time Van Gaal’s predecessor had finished describing a rival team’s strong points, Ferdinand reckoned, the United players took the field believing the opposition were better than was actually the case. Van Gaal believes in giving players as much information as possible and is too set in his ways to contemplate change now even when dealing with a squad that – according to Rio Ferdinand – resented David Moyes for taking chips off the menu. “It is possible to give players too much to think about, that can be a problem at the beginning,” Van Gaal said. “I am training my players in the brain and that is why it is so difficult. I do give out a lot of information but it is up to players how to use it. I am not trying to change the way a player plays. He should keep his own identity. But every human being gets information and it is up to individuals how they pick it up and apply it.”

Defending once again his decision to sell Danny Welbeck to Arsenal, Van Gaal pointed to the fact that United still have three first-class strikers in Robin van Persie, Radamel Falcao and Wayne Rooney, with Adnan Januzaj and James Wilson as back-up. “That makes five strikers of quality,” he said. “And it is up to me to choose between them. I know that Januzaj has not made many appearances this season, but he has to compete with some very good players in the system we are using. He might have more chance of playing in a 4-3-3.”

The United manager denied that Falcao would receive preferential treatment and promised money would not be a factor if there was a case to be made for giving a young player a chance. “It would not be a problem for me to promote a player from the youth team, even over a big-money singing, if he deserved it,” Van Gaal explained. “Money alone doesn’t say anything. Quality says everything.

“You have seen it. In my previous clubs I have always given young players a chance. At Barcelona I gave debuts to Xavi, to Iniesta, to Puyol, to Valdés. At Bayern I can mention Badstuber, Müller and Alaba. I always want to promote youth but the young player has to take their chance. You don’t get endless opportunities, because when you are too long at a club without making a breakthrough there is a danger you can get used to being a substitute. I don’t like that. You always need hunger to play in the first team. Talented young players can provide a lot of stimulation to a group, but I think you have to refresh the squad every year to keep the hunger. I have done that at all my clubs.”