Louis van Gaal deserves credit for putting his faith in youth instead of signing proven players at Manchester United, according to Paul Merson. Having brought in Radamel Falcao and Angel Di Maria during his first season at Old Trafford, Van Gaal has since taken a gamble on relatively unproven players, with Anthony Martial, Memphis Depay and Matteo Darmian brought to the club at the start of the current campaign.The Dutchman has come in for intense criticism in recent months as Uniteds alarming slump has seen them eliminated from the Champions League and fall out of contention for the title. Van Gaals youngsters We look at Louis van Gaals Manchester United academy graduates A lengthy injury list has forced Van Gaal to blood several academy prospects in recent weeks, with Marcus Rashfords remarkable step up to the first team the highlight as United claimed vital wins against Midtjylland and Arsenal respectively.And Sky Sports pundit Merson believes the criticism of Van Gaal has been harsh, particularly in light of his youth policy compared to other league managers. High-profile signing Radamel Falcao failed to produce I feel sorry for Van Gaal a bit, Merson said. He could have come into United and spent all that money on 28-year-olds, proven footballers who have won things.That might not have helped the club in the long term but it might may have delivered a trophy. However, in three years time it would leave the club in a worse place than they are now.But he hasnt done that. He went out and has bought youngsters for the future and has given other youngsters a chance. Marcus Rashford grabbed two goals and an assist on his Premier League debut Its not the same as [Arsene] Wenger, who has been manager for almost 20 years. Van Gaal has been there for less than two, so its a completely different case.He has bought players for the future for United as a club. Hes not thinking of himself, hes hoping they are going to be in a better position when he leaves.United will be out to maintain their recent upturn in form when Watford travel to Old Trafford on Wednesday night. Rashford has scored four goals in his first two Manchester United games The Reds have the chance to win four consecutive games for only the second time this season, with victory keeping their slim hopes of finishing in the top four alive.Merson believes Uniteds signings, aided by their unfazed academy players, are starting to settle into life at one of world footballs biggest clubs and has tipped the resurgence to continue. Van Gaal has bought players for the future, for United as a club. He’s not thinking of himself, he’s hoping they are going to be in a better position when he leaves. Sky Sports Paul Merson United are really getting some momentum behind them and the goals of Rashford seem to have lifted the whole club and the fans, Merson added. When one of your own scores a couple of goals, then the supporters walk away seeing a brighter future.Away from him, it feels like some of the others are now getting used to playing for a very big club. Van Gaal has invested in Uniteds future with the acquisition of Memphis Depay and Anthony Martial Anthony Martial was playing in front of small crowds at Monaco and now hes learning his trade in front of 75,000 at Old Trafford.Watford will be hard to play against but I expect United to win on Wednesday. Also See: Man Utd close to 1,000 goals Man Utd v Watford preview LVG: Leave Rashford in peace Keep Rashford hungry Stitched Heat Jerseys .S. hockey team after paying his dues as an NHL general manager for more than three decades and giving up a lot of his free time to help USA Hockey. Sherman Douglas Jersey . Cote was eligible to become a free agent Feb. 15. Cote helped running back Jon Cornish run for a league-high 1,813 rushing yards en route to being named the leagues most outstanding player. https://www.cheapheatonline.com/917h-kendrick-nunn-jersey-heat.html . LOUIS -- Theres no telling how these wacky World Series games will end. Dwyane Wade Jersey . -- An ugly goal by Nick Bonino helped the Anaheim Ducks overcome the defensive-minded Phoenix Coyotes on a night when their ragged power play continued to struggle. James Jones Jersey . Isner, ranked No. 14, won his eighth career singles title and took the title in New Zealand for the second time after his victory in 2010. The match was similar to Isners quarterfinal victory over fifth-seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber which went to three sets, all tiebreaks and contained no breaks of serve. PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers still dont have a sack, at least a sack of consequence, through two games.They also dont have a loss, a trade-off they can live with while their defensive front four searches for consistency. While Cincinnatis Andy Dalton threw for 366 yards and a touchdown without an interception in Pittsburghs 24-16 victory on Sunday, the overwhelming majority of Daltons 31 completions were dump offs to running backs and tight ends. Superstar wide receiver A.J. Green was kept under wraps.Green finished with just two receptions for 38 yards while getting shadowed by Pittsburghs Ross Cockrell.I felt like it was a pretty dominant performance, Steelers safety Mike Mitchell said. I felt like it was a pretty dominant performance by the group ... We were able to take (Green) out of the game.Pittsburgh disguised a lot of its coverages, but the primary responsibility for covering Green at the line of scrimmage fell to Cockrell, who spent most of last season as a backup after getting cut by Buffalo at the end of training camp. And yet there he was, marking one of the best players in the league and more than holding his own.We threw the bus at them, Cockrell said. We played zone, man, blitz. We threw it all at them to try to limit (Greens) touches because the more he touches the ball, the more chances he has to change the game. Thats all we wanted to do.Pittsburghs only sack came when Dalton was touched down by linebacker Arthur Moats while scrambling for no gain in the third quarter. The Steelers forced Dalton to make quick decisions, and he chose to play it safe rather than force something to Green.Were not getting the sacks we want, but Andy Dalton wasnt comfortable back there, Cockrell said.GETTING IT RIGHT? The Bengals (1-1) never led but twice appeared to be on the wrong side of a potentially game-changing call. Tight end C.J. Uzomah was ruled out of bounds after making a leaping grab in the back of the end zone in the third quarter; replays suggested Uzomah may have gotten his knee down. Bengals coach Marvin Lewis didnt challenge, saying he was told Uzomah was out.Cincinnati was driving with a chance to tie with less than two minutes to play when the ball squirted loose from rookie wide receiver Tyler Boyd after Boyd was hit by linebacker James Harrison.dddddddddddd The call stood upon review even though it seemed Boyds right knee was down before he lost control.I was told it was down even by officials on our sideline, Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said. They didnt see it that way overall, so thats all that matters.NOWHERE TO RUN: The Bengals ran for just 46 yards on 18 carries and didnt have a run over 10 yards. Through two games Cincinnati is averaging 2.78 yards per carry. The inability to get anything going on the ground forced the Bengals into a ton of third-and-longs Sunday, a main reason Cincinnati went 4 of 16 (25 percent) on third down. The Bengals failed to reach the end zone on two trips inside Pittsburghs 20.It made a difference in the football game, Lewis said. We didnt have enough positives on first down, and we didnt convert the third downs.HOLDING TIGHT: So much for concerns about a drop off at tight end for the Steelers with Heath Miller retired and Ladarius Green nursing a knee injury. Second-year players Jesse James and Xavier Grimble both caught touchdown passes from Ben Roethlisberger, and veteran David Johnson helped open holes for running back DeAngelo Williams.These are the guys who play for us now, Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said. Theyre capable and we have a great deal of confidence in them, and they delivered today.HEADING HOME: Cincinnati missed a chance to open with two road victories and will try to regroup next week against Super Bowl champion Denver. The Bengals fell 20-17 in overtime at Denver last December with backup quarterback AJ McCarron filling in for Dalton. Cincinnati moved the ball pretty well against the NFLs best defense even with Dalton out, controlling the clock for more than 37 minutes.PHILADELPHIA FREEDOM: The Steelers travel to Philadelphia next Sunday. The teams played in a preseason game last month, though most of Pittsburghs regulars sat out. The Steelers havent started a season 3-0 since 2010, when they won the AFC title on the way to a Super Bowl loss to Green Bay.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '