Louis van Gaal has reminded his Manchester United players they will be fighting for their metaphorical lives when they face Yeovil in the FA Cup on Sunday.
When asked to sum up the third-round match against League One's bottom side at Huish Park, the United manager said: "It is death or the gladioli."
Dutch road cyclist Gerrie Knetemann is thought to have coined the phrase in the 1970s and 1980s as the winner of Tour de France stages received a bouquet of gladiolus flowers. Others believe it dates back to Roman times when gladiators who killed their opponents also received flowers.
Regardless of its origins, in layman's terms the phrase means one thing - "all or nothing," van Gaal explained. "You are dead or you receive the gladiolus flower. In cup matches it's always like that."
Van Gaal has won three domestic cups during his managerial career, but it has not always been a rosy picture for the 63-year-old when it comes to knockout competitions.
In 1996 van Gaal experienced one of the most embarrassing results of his career in the KNVB Cup when his Ajax team lost to second division side SC Cambuur.
During van Gaal's ill-fated second spell at Barcelona, a team of internationals including Xavi, Michael Reiziger, Frank de Boer and Juan Roman Riquelme were knocked out of the Copa del Rey by third tier side Novelda in front of just 5,500 spectators.
That defeat was so painful for van Gaal that he has consigned any memory of it to the dustbin
"I cannot remember anymore. It is wiped out of my mind," he said. "But I do remember the criticism in Spain was very high after."
Van Gaal was also ridiculed after his first experience of cup football in England when his United team were dumped out of the Capital One Cup in August following a 4-0 defeat to MK Dons.
- Source: Eurosport
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