The Dutchman arrived at Old Trafford on Monday morning, where he discussed the situation with Ed Woodward and his departure was confirmed.
Ryan Giggs' future at the club is also in doubt, with the Welshman set to leave despite being offered a new coaching role at the club.
Jose Mourinho is set to be appointed as Van Gaal's replacement, with the ex-Chelsea coach's agent, Jorge Mendes, flying in this week to finalise the deal.
Join us here throughout the day as we'll bring you all the latest news as this long-running saga reaches its finale.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to become the first signing of the Jose Mourinho era at Manchester United.
It is understood Ibrahimovic, a free agent after his contract with Paris St Germain expired, has agreed a deal to join United this summer.
Ibrahimovic, 34, is said to have agreed a one-year deal with an option for a further year, and the move could be announced within the next 48 hours.
The Sweden skipper was keen to resolve his future before he leads his country at Euro 2016 and will be reunited with incoming United boss Jose Mourinho, whom he played under at Inter Milan.
The current assistant boss is tipped to leave the club with Louis van Gaal and will need replacing.
There are rumours that there could be a very, er, special appointment in that department.
Would Zlatan Ibrahimovic make a good assistant?
According to De Telegraaf, there are plans for Zlatan to become an 'assistant coach' at Manchester United after his playing career.
Louis van Gaal was worse than David Moyes but better than Ron Atkinson, at least as far as winning matches goes.
The former Bayern Munich and Barcelona boss won 52 per cent of his matches while in charge of Manchester United.
That’s the third highest win percentage of any manager at the club since Sir Matt Busby first took over according to figures taken from managerstats.co.uk.
Sir Alex Ferguson, perhaps unsurprisingly, has the best win percentage of any of the United managers in question - 60 per cent.
He’s followed, more surprisingly, by David Moyes who won 53 per cent of his matches in charge of the club.
Louis van Gaal’s reign affected Manchester United’s performance off the pitch as well as of it.
The Dutchman has been relieved of his duties following a disappointing two-year spell with Jose Mourinho set to take over.
But despite what you might think the club’s share price is actually higher now than it was when Van Gaal took charge of the club two years ago.
When he was appointed as manager on 19 May 2014, shares were $16.67 each, whereas on the Friday before the FA Cup final , shares were $16.80 each.
Van Gaal, of course, took over shortly after David Moyes’ doomed season in charge when optimism at Old Trafford was at an all-time low.
United’s share price hit its highest point since the club was floated on the New York stock exchange in 2012 shortly after Van Gaal’s first match in charge.
Louis van Gaal’s poor record in the transfer market is one of the key reasons why he has been handed his P45. And if you take a look at the players he has brought in during his two-year spell at Old Trafford, you’re able to see the eye-watering amounts that have been squandered by the Red Devils.
You can also have your say on who was a hit or a miss here.
2014-15
- Ander Herrera - £29million
- Luke Shaw - £27million
- Marcos Rojo - £16million
- Angel Di Maria - £59.7million
- Daley Blind - £13.8million
- Victor Valdes - Free
- Memphis Depay £25million
- Matteo Darmian £12.7million
- Bastian Schweinsteiger £14.4million
- Morgan Schneiderlin £25million
- Sergio Romero Free
- Anthony Martial £36million
- Reagan Pool £100,000
We all know what happened next, of course, and perhaps it was naive to expect the master of the short-term, scorched-earth managerial stint to morph into a Ferguson figure. But still, the sheer ugliness of his downfall – the Carneiro affair, the infighting – raised a few eyebrows.
He will get into scrapes at United. It’s his nature. But Mourinho must make sure the results do the talking first and foremost. If he brings success on the field, he will be forgiven his foibles.
Many United fans showed impressive loyalty to Van Gaal, even as he was being panned by former players and neutrals. But it cannot be denied that belief in the side has ebbed away over the last couple of years (and, to be fair, during the David Moyes era), to the extent that tedious performances have come to be seen as the norm.
Tactically, Mourinho is no great entertainer. But a little bit of trademark spark on the touchline will go a long way to restoring a positive atmosphere.
But what about Rooney’s role? The 30-year-old has been used in midfield since returning from injury, but that could just be because Van Gaal had lost faith in the likes of Schneiderlin and Ander Herrera. But with some summer investment, he could well be shunted forward, where Rashford and Martial have been shining.
Mourinho and United are, on the face of it, not the perfect match. This is a club that has always prided itself on its attacking philosophy and a commitment to promoting young talent; Mourinho is a master of backs-against-the-wall football and has spent much of his career refusing to put his faith in kids.
Something’s got to give. The turgid performances under Van Gaal have probably reset expectations at Old Trafford somewhat, which is in Mourinho’s favour. But he will need to play the likes of Rashford and Cameron Borthwick-Jackson or risk a backlash from supporters.
The mooted swoop for Zlatan Ibrahimovic would certainly solve that problem, but there are other areas that need attention. The defence would benefit from some more competition for places - John Stones and Marquinhos are likely targets – and new midfield talent will be needed if those there now are axed. It could be a busy summer.
United’s squad is a funny thing: an odd-and-sods mix of players left over from the Ferguson years, a number of stopgap signings and a few footballers of genuine quality. The spine – David De Gea, Chris Smalling, Wayne Rooney , Anthony Martial – is there, but the tree needs pruning before it can grow afresh.
We all know Mourinho doesn’t have a great deal of time for Juan Mata, but there are more pressing concerns over the likes of Bastian Schweinsteiger, Marcos Rojo, Morgan Schneiderlin, Phil Jones, Marouane Fellaini and Memphis Depay. Mourinho must decide – and quickly – who can be moved on this summer.
It promises to be a busy summer at Old Trafford as Mourinho seeks to arrest the club’s recent slide.
Over the next few posts we’ll run over seven things we will need to do, starting with getting the dressing room onside:
The priority for Mourinho must be bringing unity to a dressing room that was teetering on mutiny in the final days of Van Gaal’s reign. There have been stories in recent days of senior players voicing concerns on behalf of team-mates and the bizarre tracking of emails to players: hardly a culture likely to foster success.
Mourinho can be an abrasive character, of course, but he inspires a fierce loyalty in those who buy into his methods. If he can create the kind of us-vs-them atmosphere that has been missing since Sir Alex Ferguson’s time at Old Trafford, it will go a long way.
Football is about winning. For Manchester United it is about winning titles.
They’ll be happy with having won the FA Cup and all that. But United have been so average in the league over the last two years that they simply could not afford to turn their noses up at Jose Mourinho .
The Portuguese may be a man who courts controversy. But of course he is the right fit. He is a serial winner. He is the man with the highest winning percentage in Premier League history.
So yeah, 1pm has been and gone
And we still have no official news from Manchester United regarding LVG’s departure and - perhaps more interestingly - the future of Ryan Giggs.
While the Dutchman’s exit has been on the cards for a while, it’s a potential end to the 29-year Old Trafford career of the Welshman that will hanker more with the United fans.
While we wait for further updates from the club, here’s a video showing just where it all went wrong for Van Gaal.
