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Twelve games, ten won, one lost and one drawn. Yet, Manchester United have just crept to the fourth position in the Premier League standings. It's difficult to say how this season has turned out to be but one thing is for sure if one doesn't find this club's name in the top two, then things are not good. Even after this run of form, United have managed to lift just one spot up.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has done an admirable job to stabilise the sinking ship, even if for the short term. Can he win the title? No. Can he finish in the top four? Possibly Yes. But with City, Liverpool and Spurs nothing but almost guaranteed a top-four finish, it will be a battle between Chelsea, United and Arsenal for the fourth spot.
When it comes to the form of players, the Red Devils surpass the other two teams. Solskjaer has removed all the restraints from the players who were seemingly bounded by Jose Mourinho's tactics. He has motivated them to play "United way", that is, attacking, quick and positive football.
His excellent spring with his former club earned him January's Manager of the Month award. And just for the fact, he is the first one to get this accolade since Sir Alex Ferguson retired. The latest defeat against PSG leaves him with another test to come back strongly in the next game.
With the new caretaker manager making his case to get a permanent job, we list the five players who have got a new lease of life under him.
#5 Anthony Martial
The French attacker has scored nine goals and registered two assists in 20 Premier League games this season. Martial has been one of the standout performers of this season.
Even when Mourinho was in charge, he continued to find the net regularly. Back in the summer, there was hardly any chance that he would be wearing the United-shirt again but the arrival of Solskjaer has turned the tables completely.
The five-year contract extension is the best news for the United fans who were eagerly waiting for this news. The knock he obtained against PSG in the first leg could be a huge setback for the Reds as he faces a race to get fit for the second leg.
#4 Ander Herrera
Solskjaer knows his limitations but at the same time, he is also aware of his qualities. He has used the partnership of Ander Herrera and Nemanja Matic to give a free license to Paul Pogba and one cannot deny the positive externality of the Spaniard on the former Juventus midfielder.
He has also scored a goal and registered two assists under the new caretaker manager. After winning the Sir Matt Busby player of the year award in for 2016-17, he has failed to find a regular spot in the team. But with Solskjaer behind the scenes, it looks like he has found his form and confidence again.
This season, he is averaging 2 interceptions per game and 2.4 tackles per game. He is not only pivotal for Pogba's form but also for Ashley Young's form. Young likes to venture forward leaving spaces behind him which are often covered by the Spaniard. He was given the rest against Burnley which resulted in dropping two points by his team.
#3 Victor Lindelof
What a story. Maybe the most improved player since last season, Victor Lindelof's debut year in England was dreadful, as he failed to deal with the aerial balls and was easily muscled out by the forwards.
This season, he has easily been the best centre-back in United's squad. He has been very calm and composed on the ball and has also made some good runs in the opposition's half.
Lindelof came to United's rescue against Burnley by scoring an injury-time equaliser. Unlike last season, he is yet to concede a goal due to an error. Mourinho used him in the left side of the centre defence but Solskjaer has allocated Phil Jones to that position and Lindelof to the right.
This season has also been special for the 24-year-old as he won the Swedish player of the year award in 2018. The next mission he has is to stop Kylian Mbappe and PSG attack in France.
#2 Paul Pogba
We are finally witnessing the man we all wanted. In nine Premier League games under Solskjaer, Pogba has scored eight goals and registered five assists. He has been involved in more than 56.5 percent of the goals scored by Manchester United in the EPL since the managerial change.
36.3 percent of Pogba's league goals have come under the managerial period of Solskjaer. Ole has already stated that Pogba is the main man and he would prefer to build the team around him. The French superstar has been in blistering form since Mourinho has left and questions should be asked about the French midfielder not performing like that earlier.
His performance against Fulham spoke volumes about how bounded he was under Mourinho. The heat map shows that he is concentrating on scoring goals rather than defending them. The pair of Herrera and Matic has done more than enough to give him a free role.
#1 Marcus Rashford
He has 100 Premier League appearances under his bag but it will be fair to say that most of those came as a substitute. Everyone doubted that he could develop as a number nine but with Ole at the helm, Marcus Rashford has done tremendously well to slacken those concerns.
The new caretaker manager has chosen the 21-year old ahead of Romelu Lukaku and he has repaid his manager's faith by scoring six goals in eight games. This season, he has scored nine goals overall and also registered seven assists in the EPL.
In recent weeks, he has proven that he could be the man who would lead United to the league title next year. Now he has also won the January's player of the Month award after his amazing performances. The trust of the manager can be seen by the fact that he was rested against Fulham so that he could be fresh against PSG.
