Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has claimed that he will give his current crop of players a chance to prove themselves before he enters the transfer market.

The former Premier League champions have been linked with numerous names around Europe, including Arturo Vidal, Mats Hummels and Angel di Maria.

However, the Dutchman, who held his first press conference as United boss this afternoon, has insisted that he will assess the players that he already has.

The 62-year-old, who guided the Netherlands to third place at the World Cup in Brazil, also revealed that new arrivals Ander Herrera and Luke Shaw were already wanted by United before he took on the manager's role.

"I want to look at the players here at present," Van Gaal told reporters. "I know the players but I have not trained and coached them. It will take three or four weeks to see what they can do before we buy other players. Shaw and Herrera were already on the list and I approved them because I liked them."

The Dutchman has also claimed that he will take time to decide on who will captain the team next season.