Bayern Munich coach Louis van Gaal is preparing to wield the axe this winter and drastically reduce his playing staff.

The Dutchman is unhappy not only with the size of his current squad, but also some of the players in it.

Italy striker Luca Toni has already been told he can find himself a new club and he is not the only player Van Gaal now wants rid of.

"I said in my first press conference that I did not want 25 or 26 men in my squad," he told Munich's Tz newspaper.

"That does not satisfy the perspective of those players who are from 18 to 26 and that reduces motivation.

"Therefore, we have got to get rid of players first."

Once enough players have left the club, Van Gaal intends to buy the kind of players he wants and not those he inherited from former regimes.

"I am going to be the one to select the squad after this season," he said.

"Maybe I will do that in winter too. Maybe then other players would come and things would perhaps work quicker."

Nevertheless, it is still not certain that Van Gaal will be in charge of Bayern come the end of the season.

He has a crucial week ahead of him with two must-win games - tomorrow at home to Borussia Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga and then next Tuesday at Juventus in the Champions League.

Defeat in either could well spell the end of his short tenure, although a decision on his future will be made during the winter break.