Louis van Gaal and Ryan Giggs were the special guests for a dinner organised by Manchester United's executive club at the other Old Trafford on Wednesday evening. None of numerous lounges at the football stadium have the 900-person capacity of the room overlooking the Old Trafford cricket ground, where most of the guests were United-supporting Mancunian businesspeople.

Looking smart in ties and blazers with the club badge, United's management duo impressed their audience. Van Gaal is honest, knowledgeable and witty; Giggs is very dry, knowledgeable and witty.

Van Gaal knows how to be successful at the top level in management; Giggs knows Manchester United inside out.

The pair were thrown together but they genuinely are a good partnership. It's not always easy for a club undergoing significant changes on and off the pitch, but Giggs is a conduit between the players and their manager, just like former coach Brian Kidd was.

A player might go to Giggs first with a problem, although Van Gaal prefers to get everything out in the open in one of the many meetings he calls. And while he'll listen in those meetings, he also explains why he's doing things exactly how he wants to do them.

Van Gaal, who is enjoying living in South Manchester with his wife and can't believe the support he receives from fans, introduced Giggs as Manchester United's next manager. He hopes this will be true, as does Giggs.

Louis van Gaal, left, has said that he expects his assistant Ryan Giggs to become the next manager of Manchester United.

United's record appearance holder has done his coaching badges, taken himself well out of his comfort zone away from Old Trafford and has a thirst to learn more. After a brief four-game period in 2014 as caretaker manager when he realised that he wasn't ready to be United boss, Giggs is serving a managerial apprenticeship under Van Gaal. If he becomes manager and does as well as those who've worked under him and are now thriving in management, there will be few complaints. In one dressing room at Barcelona alone Van Gaal had Jose Mourinho, Pep Guardiola, Luis Enrique, Ronald de Boer and Phillip Cocu, while Xavi is seen as a future Barca manager.

On Wednesday, Van Gaal was interviewed for 45 minutes. He covered many areas, although certain subjects, such as David De Gea, were not broached.

The Dutchman explained that his aim for United this year was to compete at all levels -- which can be deciphered as not winning the league -- but to win the league next year.

He said Anthony Martial and Memphis Depay were brought not to instantly improve the team, but with a longer-term view in mind. That's a call for patience from fans.

There was the minutiae of other players to discuss. Van Gaal revealed that midfielder Andreas Pereira, 19, is to step into Adnan Januzaj's spot this season. Januzaj is going on loan (to Dortmund) to develop his personality, explained his boss. A break away from the video consoles and a few shocks to his system might be good for the Belgian.

Van Gaal also said that Jesse Lingard, the top scorer on the 2013 preseason tour, will get game minutes this season. The Warrington-born striker, 22, has been loaned out to four Championship clubs, but former player Rio Ferdinand long picked him out for success.

"If I was going to hang my hat on a young player being a Man United player then Jesse would be the one," said Ferdinand. "He's got everything. For me Jesse could be a top, top player. He's not one of the first who you look at for flashy pieces of skill, but his understanding of the game, of where to run, where to take the ball and his desire and application in training ... he looks like a Manchester United player to me."

Forward James Wilson, 19, one of the out-and-out strikers in the United squad, is also going on loan to a Championship club -- probably Derby County -- which Van Gaal thinks will be good for his development outside the bubble of life at Manchester United. Wilson can be recalled to United at any time but he really needs to be playing football every week, and if it's not to be at Old Trafford then a big Championship club like Derby is perfect.

Van Gaal, who felt United controlled most of the games they played last season, was highly effusive when talking about his captain Wayne Rooney, whom he said was one of the best players and captains he'd ever worked with. He said he wasn't convinced that Rooney was captain material when he took over in 2014 because of what he'd heard from others. He was wrong and changed his mind after three weeks working with United's best-paid player.

Rooney is also a very popular captain among the players, although he's been frustrated with a lack of goals on the pitch for United this season. It helps that he has an open dialogue with his boss.

Van Gaal is the boss; of that there's no doubt, and maybe his strength of personality was needed in a fast-changing dressing room of big-name players at United after the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson. He needs Giggs and Rooney onside and that will make him more predisposed to praise them, but the affection and respect is genuine. He's fallen out with world-class stars before, and if he thought Giggs or Rooney were an obstacle to achieving success at the club, they wouldn't be at the club.

It's in Van Gaal's interests to paint a picture of optimism, because if he doesn't believe in his actions, who will? Such optimism does jar with the dull football that fans have witnessed so far this season, but he'll explain that the team is still in transition. If fans see tangible improvements, they'd buy that more readily. He's still popular and fans want him to do well, but they're also questioning him and his non-scoring side.

Van Gaal also promised that United would beat Liverpool on Saturday, to applause from an audience he'd long ago won over.

Andy Mitten is a freelance writer and the founder and editor of United We Stand. Follow him on Twitter: @AndyMitten.