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With Manchester City currently storming the league, flying ahead of all of the opposition and remaining unbeaten as of writing, it doesn’t look like anyone can stop Pep Guardiola from claiming his first Premier League title. The one man potentially capable? His most bitter rival, Jose Mourinho at Manchester United.
City play United in the Manchester derby next weekend and they might be the only side capable of getting a positive result against them – win, and United not only smash City’s winning streak but also prevent them from breaking the record of most consecutive Premier League wins. And if they can do that, then the league is definitely there for the taking.
To ultimately win the title, however, their biggest players need to keep on firing and performing consistently at their best – no mediocrity can be accepted, essentially. Here are the five most important players that simply must play at their very best for United to have a shot at winning the league.
#1 David de Gea
The legendary Sir Alex Ferguson once stated that a truly great goalkeeper is worth 15 points a season – possibly the difference between winning a title and missing out on it – and of course, he had one of the true greats at his disposal in the form of Peter Schmeichel. It’s taken years for United to find another goalkeeper of Schmeichel’s calibre, but luckily for Mourinho, he has one in the form of Spanish star David de Gea.
After a bit of a shaky start to his career at Old Trafford, de Gea has developed into arguably the finest keeper not only in the Premier League, but in the world. His shot-stopping ability is simply phenomenal, his distribution is excellent and he’s also become adept at defending against set-pieces, something that remains paramount in the Premier League.
His performance last night in United’s 3-1 win over Arsenal was hailed by Mourinho as one of the finest by any goalkeeper he’s ever seen – de Gea somehow kept out 14 shots on target, including gilt-edged chances from one of the world’s most highly rated strikers in Alexandre Lacazette. It was a performance worthy of winning his side the league, and if he can keep such a high level of form, he gives United a massive chance of capturing their first Premier League in the post-Ferguson years.
#2 Paul Pogba
Many fans and observers raised their eyebrows when United paid a world record £89m to bring Paul Pogba back to Old Trafford from Juventus last summer, and to be honest, his inconsistent performances in 2016/17 did little to prove them wrong. His form has improved massively over time though as he’s become more comfortable with Mourinho’s methods, and before he picked up a thigh injury in September, he looked like United’s best player.
The fact that the Red Devils appeared to be struggling in the centre of their midfield without the Frenchman clearly showed his importance to United’s chance of winning the Premier League, and it was no surprise that his return coincided with three straight Premier League wins, including an impressive 4-1 win over Newcastle United that saw him score his third league goal of the season.
In yesterday’s clash with Arsenal, Pogba had a bit of a mixed game – he assisted two of United’s three goals, but he was also shown a straight red card late on in the game for a crude tackle on Hector Bellerin. The sending off means he’ll miss the match against Manchester City and while Mourinho defended him as a “clean player” and said the decision was unfair post-game, inside he was probably smarting over the loss of such a key player for such a massive fixture.
When Pogba returns from suspension, though, as United’s key midfielder, he’ll need to be at his absolute best, world-beating form for the remainder of the season for them to win the title. And the way he’s been playing recently, it’s a distinct possibility.
#3 Romelu Lukaku
When United paid somewhere around the £80m mark to sign Romelu Lukaku from Everton in the summer, it was a move that basically split opinion across the football world. Some felt that it was a tremendous move – Lukaku had one of the best goal-scoring records in the Premier League in recent years, scoring over 20 goals in all competitions in his last three seasons – while others felt that he was too crude of a striker for a side like United and would miss as many chances as he’d put away.
Thus far, you’d have to call the big Belgian a hit. He’s delivered goals in spades – eight in the Premier League, 12 in all competitions – and has generally performed well for the most part. It is true however that Lukaku has come under criticism for going missing in big games – in United’s matches with other sides in the “big six” thus far (vs. Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham and Arsenal) he hasn’t scored a goal, and Harry Kane, Alvaro Morata, Mohamed Salah and Sergio Aguero – all of whom play for United’s big rivals – have scored more than him thus far.
If United want to win the league, then Lukaku simply must deliver when it matters, and not just in games that the Red Devils are already looking likely to win. He scored plenty of goals for Everton but the criticism there was always that he was more of a flat-track bully who didn’t score key goals, and if the same happens to him at United, then they’re likely to miss out. Start scoring regularly against everyone though, and the Belgian powerhouse could deliver the Premier League title. It’s a case of watch this space.
#4 Zlatan Ibrahimovic
As the season goes deeper and key players become more tired and worn down, one big advantage that United have over a lot of their rivals – although this may not be an advantage over Manchester City – is their squad depth and the high level of players that they can call upon. And so, if Romelu Lukaku is misfiring, or can’t deliver key goals against the top teams, they have a man they can turn to right there – Swedish legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Zlatan was of course at United last season, where he scored 17 goals in Premier League action, an impressive total given United missed out on the top four spots, but a severe knee injury last summer looked like it might curtail his career at the top level. He’s proven everyone wrong by getting back to fitness quicker than was expected, though, and so he’s been brought back to United for another season. And while Lukaku has been criticised for a lack of key goals, Zlatan was responsible solely for 11 of United’s points last season.
Since returning to United, he’s only appeared in three Premier League games – all as a substitute – but with the busy Christmas period coming up, it’s likely that Mourinho will need to turn to the Swede to give him an extra option up front in order for United to bag the goals they need for maximum points. And whether he forms a partnership with Lukaku, or replaces him at times, his veteran wiles could prove to be invaluable. If he can help United to win the title, it could be his greatest achievement yet.
#5 Phil Jones
With question marks over the likes of Chris Smalling and Marcos Rojo in United’s defence, it was no surprise to see Mourinho spend big money to bring Swedish international Victor Lindelof to Old Trafford in the summer. It was a surprise, however, when he wasn’t the first choice to partner Eric Bailly – instead, Mourinho turned to Phil Jones, stating that the England international was the “ideal defender” for him if he could keep himself fit.
Early in the season, Jones delivered in spades. The standout performer for United in their early games, Jones looked like he was finally living up to the potential he’d shown when Sir Alex Ferguson claimed he could become as good as club legend Duncan Edwards when he first signed with United in 2011. United kept clean sheets in eight of the league games he was involved in, and since he picked up a hamstring injury in November, they’ve conceded four goals in four games – as many as they did in 11 with Jones at the back.
It’s no wonder Mourinho was furious with Gareth Southgate when Jones was injured during international duty in a friendly game with Germany. While he’s still recovering from the injury – he wasn’t in the squad for the most recent game against Arsenal – he could well end up playing a part against Manchester City and should be back in the side after that. Ferguson once stated that “attack wins you games, defence wins you championships” – and if Jones can hit top form, that could ring true for Mourinho too.
