'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Manchester United's bullish start to the season has come to an end. The bearish trend has started; Jose Mourinho has a tough task ahead of him post this International break. United are already eight points adrift of the league leaders and they cannot afford another slip up in the points table. All is not well in the United camp at the moment and the team looked more disoriented in their last game against Chelsea.
Here are the five reasons that will derail Manchester United's run in the Premier League and Champions League.
#1 Phil Jones Injury concern
The biggest blow to Manchester United is the injury of their in-form defender, Phil Jones. The shape of Phil Jones is questionable after he hobbled out of England’s game against Germany in the 2nd half of the game.
Mourinho criticized the English coach, Gareth Southgate's decisiveness to field the center-back who was not fully fit in the starting eleven. Mourinho has previously had to deal with injuries to several key players and will be desperately hoping for Jones’ injury to be not grave, especially before the most hectic phase of the season.
United's defence looked despondent when Jones wasn't playing. With Victor Lindelof failing to live up to the expectations at Old Trafford, who will Mourinho trust during his absence?
#2 Lack of fluidity in midfield
There is a feeling that United's last year conundrum has resurfaced again. In the games against Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool, Huddersfield and Stoke the mid-field went missing during a majority of the game period.
According to many pundits, United's midfield is not as fluid as that of Manchester City or Tottenham. United's build-up to goals have been sluggish. The right side of the midfield looks vulnerable with Mata not adding any pace to the game. United's last year's player of the season, Ander Herrera, has also been too inconsistent in the matches he played.
Though Pogba's return will boost United's midfield, depending on one player will not help United's pursuit of both Premier League and Champions League glory.
#3 Henrikh Mkhitaryan goes missing more often than not
Jose Mourinho has architected his attack by keeping Henrikh Mkhitaryan as the fulcrum this season, selecting him as his no.10. The Armenian started his season with a bang providing five assists in his first three Premier League games.
Suddenly, everything went south for the former Dortmund superstar. Mkhitaryan is struggling on the field. He gives the ball away multiple times and gets browbeaten out of games. Manchester United legend Paul Scholes slammed Mkhitaryan for not supporting Lukaku. He added Mkhitaryan's poor form as a factor in the Belgian's poor run in front of goal in recent weeks.
Some critics are slamming Mourinho for his defence-first approach which is not suiting the Armenian's play style. Mourinho must sort this issue first to consistently bring out the best in his players during the crucial period of the season.
#4 No hope for United in away games against top teams
Mourinho's Manchester United have scored just one goal in their last seven away trips to the top five teams. He is still without a Premier League away win against these top teams after he took charge at Old Trafford. His "parking the bus" strategy clearly is not working out in the modern style of football. The worrying thing for a United fan is that the same trend from last year is continuing again this year despite the Red Devils spending a fortune in the summer.
If United are to turn things around and be genuine contenders for the title, there are some away games where they will have to be on top form. They have an away match against Arsenal in the next few weeks.
What will Mourinho's strategy be to steal three points from London trip?
#5 Hectic and tough fixtures await
Manchester United are heading into an array of tough fixtures with no time to breathe. The Europa League champions are scheduled to play 14 games in the next 50 days which can be equated to one game every 80 hours.
Unlike other top teams, United's fixtures are not so easy. They have a Champions League away game against Basel; Football League cup away against Bristol City. From Premier League front, the fixtures are even more frightful. United have tough away fixtures against Watford, West Brom, Arsenal and Leicester. United also have the Manchester derby against arch-rivals Manchester City to look forward to in December.
