Christian Benteke put Aston Villa ahead but the returning Falcao scored the all important equaliser off a pass from a much booed Ashley Young.
Van Gaal was critical of his team’s inability to win against Villa who were down to 10 men for the last 25 minutes.
“I’ve seen, for example, Manchester City only in the first half against Crystal Palace and they could also be behind in the first five or 10 minutes and they struggle until half-time, but in the end it is 3-0. That’s the difference.”
Manchester City on the other hand are steady on course.They beat Crystal Palace 3 – 0 and are now equal on points with Chelsea – whose consolation is that they have a better goal difference.