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Manchester United have flown back from the United States after their recently concluded pre-season tour. In the five games they played, they won two and lost one, with the other two games ending in draws. United scored five goals and conceded seven.
The pre-season started with the open game against Club America, which ended with the score tied at 1-1. Next, against the San Jose Earthquakes, United toiled but could not find a goal and both teams played out an uneventful 0-0 draw.
In the third game against AC Milan, United took the lead early through Alexis Sanchez, but ended up conceding one as well. \
They ultimately went on to win the game 9-8 on penalties. The fourth game ended in a bitter 1-4 defeat at the hands of their rivals Liverpool. In the final game against Real Madrid, the Red Devils managed some redemption, as they won it 2-1.
The Pre-season tour was marred by many events which drew the attention away from football and was a mixed experience for the players as well as the Manchester United fans.
However, even though the games will help United in their preparation for the upcoming season, there were a few areas of concern which will have United fans worried.
#5 Defensive Frailties
Manchester United let in seven goals in five games and it will not bode well for Mourinho who likes a stellar defence as a base of his operations.
Not once in the pre-season did United look assured in defence, with Axel Tuanzebe the only one who looked like he had the capacity to play the ball out of the defense. Constantly changing formation and partners did not help.
United started the first two games with two at the back, Bailly and Smalling. Tuanzebe joined them in the back three against AC Milan.
In the next game against Liverpool, Bailly had to partner youngsters Fosu-Mensah and Tuanzebe in the back three. Against Real Madrid, Bailly had Fosu-Mensah and McTominay for company.
As such, United ended the United States tour without a firm idea about who their first choice starters in defense will be. United was lucky more than once, especially in the game against Real Madrid, not to concede more goals, because the defence was all over the place, there was lack of coordination between the players and very less composure on display.
But with Lindelof, Jones and Young to come back into this team and at least two of them set to feature regularly in the 2018/19 season, things should be better, but the lack of practice together in the pre-season might be a concern.
Add to that the curious case of the wingbacks/fullbacks. The left-back situation should be sorted between Shaw and Young. Valencia wobbled off in the San Jose game and Darmian has been taking his place ever since.
It seems that Darmian is destined to leave, and with Dalot also injured, it leaves United quite thin in the right-back area.
#4 Piling Injuries, Lack of full team
The pre-season in the US also saw players added to the injury list. For starters, Matic returned early from his World Cup sabbatical, with United fans hopeful of his involvement in the game against AC Milan.
However, Mourinho later revealed that Matic had picked up an injury while on international duty and would miss the start of the season.
Next, it was Valencia's turn, as the club captain designee picked up a calf injury in the game against San Jose Earthquakes that ruled his out of the preseason tour of US. Ahead of the game against Livepool, Smalling picked up a knock in training and has not featured in the first team since. Dalot is already injured. Even the phenomenal Bailly himself is nursing an injury.
Apart from the injuries, the FIFA World Cup 2018 has resulted in at least 6 first team members missing out on the pre-season entirely.
Romelu Lukaku, Paul Pogba, Ashley Young, Victor Lindelof, Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard should feature prominently in the first team in the upcoming season, yet they were enjoying deserved rest after extensive world cup run with their countries.
Thankfully, David De Gea returned in time to feature in the last game in the US against Real Madrid.
The preseason games are supposed to prepare teams for the grueling season ahead, whereas Manchester United have not played their first team or even a team close to their first 11 in the pre-season.
Mourinho will be worried if his missing stars will be able to adjust with the rest of the squad in time. As such, pre-season was more about individual developments for Manchester United, while doubts about Mourinho's strongest 11 still exists.
#3 Sulky Jose
Jose Mourinho's mood has grown bitter with every passing day in the United States. For starters, he was annoyed with the absence of so many first-team players in the squad, which is understandable.
His wrath then fell on Valencia, who sustained a calf injury in the second preseason game. It was Martial next, as the Frenchman rightly decided to leave training to be with his family at the time of the birth of his child.
All the while, United's dismal performance in the transfer market kept him fuming, as he publicly vented his anger. Some of his remarks were in such poor taste that United fans were left aghast.
Criticizing his players publicly has become a norm for the Special One, but when he claimed "This is not our team, this is not our squad - not even 30 percent of it", he was talking about a lot of youngsters and squad players in the team.
This is what will concern United fans the most. Mourinho does not like nurturing young players, he is very results oriented.
But Manchester United has always been synonymous with developing players from the academy and with talented players like Chong, Gomes on the fringes of the first team around, such comments will not be too inspirational.
But Mourinho also has a habit of creating a ruckus and diverting attention from his poor performing team. So it could be that the Special One was just making sure his team's frailties are not discussed too much.
Whatever be the reason, the pre-season brought out a side of Mourinho that does not bode well with the image of a Manchester United Manager.
The fact that this will be Mourinho's now infamous third season makes things pretty interesting. To add fuel to fire, Zinedine Zidane is reportedly being looked at as a replacement for Mourinho already.
#2 The Anthony Martial Episode
Anthony Martial already wanted to leave United before the start of the season. For a club like Manchester United, when one of the best young talents wants to leave, something is definitely wrong.
Martial's relation with Mourinho has gone from bad to worse, but the pre-season in the US brought out another sorrow aspect. Hours before the AC Milan game, Martial left the US to be with his partner for the birth of his child.
Martial was the only recognized striker in the team and even though he was not having a break-through pre-season either, Mourinho needed him so that he could play others in their natural position. Mourinho was furious and did not hide his feelings.
There were even talks that Martial would not return and this was his attempt to engineer a move away from the club. Since then, however, Martial has taken to social media to explain his absence and has also confirmed that he is returning to Manchester United training soon.
The pre-season has brought the animosity between these two out in the open and it is highly unlikely that this is the last we are hearing of the episode.
#1 The Right Wing
The glaring gap in the right wing that protruded out of Old Trafford last season, has not been resolved and if anything, the five pre-season games in the US added further evidence to that. Manchester United desperately need to fill up the right wing before the close of the transfer window in a week's time.
The likes of Pereira and Fred will only flourish if they have people to aim the ball to, the runners from the midfield need wingers to stretch the game to create spaces and Valencia requires someone to build a strong partnership with while going forward.
This has to be the biggest lesson, the biggest truth that Mourinho and the United management can derive from the pre-season games so far and it would do Manchester United a whole lot of good if they get their man as soon as possible.
Willan is reportedly on Manchester United's radar, and having worked with Mourinho before, the Brazilian will fit in well at United.
He also comes with a proven premier league experience and also makes rivals Chelsea weaker, both of which should please Mourinho. However, at 30 years old, Willian does not have age on his side and if he arrives, will be expected to hit the ground running.
Another player who was touted for the right wing role at United is Ivan Perisic, and even though he would fit the bill at United, it might be a swap deal involving Anthony Martial, so it will not appeal to the United fans.
Whether the issue is resolved before the transfer window closes next week will go a long way to determine if United competes for the title next season.
Can United work on these areas before the start of the Premier League season? Sound off your opinions in the comments section below!
