Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal has said that Wayne Rooney has put the onus on himself to improve the level of his performances.

The Red Devils skipper has appeared to be off the pace in the first three matches of his side's campaign, which the 29-year-old admitted after United's 3-1 win over Club Brugge in the Champions League.

Van Gaal believes that the forward has shown great initiative to acknowledge his poor form and address it before it becomes a major problem for his team.

He told reporters: "It starts always with the player himself. When you are saying so publicly that you are bad, then you know that you are very bad at that time. My first answer was that it starts with the player himself as he has to admit that he is bad and then he can improve. When you don't admit, you cannot improve.

"I think that's fantastic that a player will admit that. It's also, for me, unbelievable, because he is one of the few players who is saying those things. [That is] because it can after a few weeks be a threat of the media again, or pressure from the media - I don't know that word I want to say, so I can't express it.

"He takes a risk, I think, but he is very confident that he will make the goals that we expect that from him, and I am confident also."

United take on Newcastle United at Old Trafford later today.