Manchester United: Louis van Gaal reveals pre-season plans ahead of Tottenham Premier League opener

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has revealed he plans to share the minutes between all the members of his squad during pre-season games in order for them to be in the best possible form for the Premier League opener against Tottenham Hotspur on 8 August.

United have started the preparation for the 2015-16 season, with some international players, including goalkeeper David de Gea, joining the squad on Monday 6 July after enjoying extra time on holiday.

Having begun the pre-season at their Carrington training ground, United will travel to the US, where they will face Club America on 17 July before games against San Jose Earthquakes, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain in the International Championship Cup, which they won in 2014.

After a slow start to the 2014-15 season, following the arrival of Van Gaal and a very demanding pre-season, the manager has made changes to the pre-season tour in order to avoid past mistakes.

And he has said alongside rotating the squad, the academy players will also have a chance to impress before the game against Spurs.

"In the first two matches, I will play all the players at the most for 45 minutes because we have to adapt to that new situation. A lot of youngsters will also have the possibility to step into the matches," the boss said to the club's official website.

"The Barcelona and PSG games are the third and fourth matches and at that point we will play with certain players for 60 minutes and 30 minutes. It will also be good to see where we stand then against the level of those kinds of teams.

"It can also say nothing about that though because last year we won every game with big figures, good results and attractive football. For me the most important match is the first match of the Premier League."