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With Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea all ending last season with major trophies, Manchester United were the only team in the Premier League top six to not feature in any major cup final. The transfer window closed today (8 August) with the Manchester club failing to complete any deals with their midfield targets, Bruno Fernandes and Paulo Dybala, an area where they look the most cumbersome.
They are left without their number nine, as they sold Romelu Lukaku to Inter Milan. United's main man, Paul Pogba's future remains clouded as continued interest from Real Madrid persists. Fair to say, this might be the most anxious and frustrating time for United fans, as they fear another dismal season.
So what can Ole Gunnar Solskjaer do as a manager do to steer them to a successful season?
#3 Play high pressing, high energy football
"We’ve got very quick, direct and pacy players and we tried to press, stay high, get everyone locked up. We did that so we would create more chances, win the ball up higher and try to dominate the game," the Norwegian told MUTV after his side's 2-0 win against Perth Glory in their first friendly game of pre-season.
That's precisely the style and tempo United need to play with this season, using the pace of forwards Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Tahith Chong. Not being able to break oppositions down had been the feature of United's woeful story last season due to their lethargic attack and lack of energy after losing the ball.
But United have shown, in patches, last season and in pre-season that when they do press with the likes of Scott McTominay and Jesse Lingard, they harm the opposition. With the addition of Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Harry Maguire, both specialists in winning the ball and playing out from the back, we could see more of that press this season.
#2 McTominay has to step up
With the departure of Ander Herrera and Marouane Fellaini, and poor transfer business leading to no summer signings in the department, we'll likely see a midfield of Pogba, McTominay, and Fred/Matic. Consequences of a poor midfield already surfaced last season, with an ageing Mata and a sluggish Matic being only shadows of their past selves.
This season would certainly depend a lot on the performance of Scott McTominay, who has already planted his feet alongside Pogba. Former manager Jose Mourinho always spoke highly of "the kid", who particularly shone at the end of last season with some brilliant performances, especially in Europe.
Solskjaer also has options to include Angel Gomes, who is one of the most exciting prospects from United's academy. United could be a Pogba injury away from collateral damage in midfield, and United fans hope that McTominay and Gomes can live up to their expectations.
#1 Frontline of Rashford, Martial, James and Greenwood
The 17-year-old Mason Greenwood has already shown how impressive he is, scoring two goals in pre-season, and those who follow the United academy games would know that he's a special talent, a natural finisher, often compared to United great Robin van Persie. This very young attacking lineup of Rashford, Martial, Greenwood and James would definitely find itself under immense pressure to perform in the Premier League.
With Lukaku's departure to Inter, it'd be on Greenwood and Martial to play upfront and score the goals, something United fans are very excited about after losing patience with Lukaku, who had a very poor last season. In fact, Mason Greenwood has staggering stats for the United U-18, scoring 31 goals from 30 games last season, but we'd have to wait and see how he copes with the physicality of the Premier League.
The class of '92, which produced the likes of Beckham, the Nevilles, Giggs and Scholes, is one of the great examples of the kind of talent the Manchester United academy develops and the current crop could go a long way in defining where United go from here in the coming seasons.
The United faithful know that their team has a long way to go to catch City and Liverpool, but are willing to put their faith in the legend who gave them their greatest ever achievement, twenty years ago. The future is uncertain, but it's what makes the game so enjoyable and exciting.
