In 2013-14, Manchester United had their worst season in over twenty years: they came 7th in the league; could only reach the quarter finals of the UEFA Champions League; and got knocked out of the League Cup and FA Cup in embarrassing circumstances. For the first time in many years, Manchester United began the 2014-15 league campaign with qualification to the UEFA Champions League as a priority.
A new man, a new era. Louis van Gaal was named the new boss at the club, after the sacking of David Moyes, and hopes of the management and fans of the club rose to the sky. Having achieved so much over the years, fans and management would be right to rejoice over his arrival. Van Gaal lead the Netherlands to third place in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
The summer signings of Manchester United, which amounted to a whopping £157.7 million on six players, including a British-record fee for Angel Di Maria. Luke Shaw, Daley Blind, Marcos Rojo, Ander Herrera all joined the club over the busy summer; Radamel Falcao was also signed on loan from Monaco on deadline day. The new signings meant that some familiar faces had to leave the club in order to get more playing time under their belt or make way for the new arrivals. Danny Welbeck, a product of Manchester United’s academy, joined Arsenal; Javier Hernandez and Louis Nani joined Real Madrid and Sporting Lisbon respectively; Shinji Kagawa returned to Borussia Dortmund after failing to make an impact at the club.
Under the management of Louis van Gaal, the Red Devils could not manage to carry their fine pre-season form into the Premier League, but it appears after few wobbles van Gaal’s men are finding their feet. Manchester United started poorly in the league, losing to Swansea at Old Trafford, a draw with Sunderland, not to mention the unacceptable 4-0 defeat to MK Dons in the Capital One Cup. It seemed that any confidence and momentum the players gathered from the pre-season had gone out of the window as the Red Devils could only muster a goalless draw with Burnley. At this point fans began questioning the selection and tactics of van Gaal. The football world is used to a United side that plays with lots of pace and attacks until the final whistle, and this was not the squad that was seen early in the season.
A change in form began in September, and there were signs that the real Manchester United was back when Queens Park Rangers visited Old Trafford. The Red Devils produced a 4-0 victory and showed total dominance over 90 minutes in what was their best game of their season up to that point. Confidence seemed to be gradually coming back, but there were also setbacks. When Manchester United visited Leicester City, the Red Devils took a 3-1 lead before a controversial penalty was awarded to the home side which changed the complexion of the game. At the final whistle Leicester City had won by 5-3, and while lots of positives could had been taken from the game, it was also another shocking setback for United. Another big problem was that at this point in the season, Manchester United had not won a fixture away from Old Trafford.
West Ham United was up next and this game tested the mentality and strength of Manchester United. With over twenty minutes to play, captain Wayne Rooney saw a red card, but his team-mates were able to hang on to pick up a 2-1 victory in front of their home fans. Van Gaal was getting things in order at the right time.
A win at home to Everton was the start of October. Draws with West Bromwich Albion (away) and Chelsea FC (home) saw United unbeaten in October.
November started with a defeat to Manchester City; again fans were happy with the lack of character their stars showed during the defeat to their neighbours. Many football fans and analysts argued that if not for Chris Smalling’s sending off, the game would have seen a different result. Manchester United would make this defeat a rallying point for the team, and since the defeat by the defending champions, Van Gaal and his men have won six games in a row. This run includes recording their first away win over Arsenal at the Emirates and beating their bitter rivals Liverpool in the process.
Even though van Gaal will be the man to carry most of the blame for some poor results early in the year, it will be unfair not to consider the injury problems he has at his camp. Manchester United have seen forty-seven players miss games due to injury this season. Injuries have made it impossible for the manager to play a regular first team. Some football pundits and analysts have began questioning van Gaal’s training drills as the reason for all the injury problems, as some say the two training sections he has scheduled have been the cause of the injuries. However, it is unclear if this is the case or just a run of bad luck given we are merely half-way through his first season with the club.
The Red Devils have won six in a row and are in third place in the Premier League. That could sum up the current form of the club. Manchester United are gradually finding their feet, and although the Red Devils have not been at their best they have managed to win and that is a hallmark of a good team. Recent performances by the club have brought about confidence to the players and comfort with the tactics of the manager. Manchester United are currently eight points off first placed team Chelsea and five points off second place team Manchester City.
Now let’s do a little on Louis Van Gaal, the man at the helm of affairs at the club. His pedigree arguably was the reason Manchester United attracted most of their new signings in the summer. Naming Ryan Giggs as his assistant manager and handing the captain’s armband to Wayne Rooney pleased fans and brought them onside with his judgements. Van Gaal is gradually getting things right at his new club, considering he has so many of his players on the injury list. Not many managers can survive with the number of injures on his list, yet he has soldiered on with his Red Army and the team is currently in third place in the table.
Though it has been a team effort one cannot talk about Manchester United’s current run of form without mentioning the name of David De Gea. His outstanding form has saved points for the club this season, and he was especially good in the victory over Liverpool. Sinche his return from injury, Michael Carrick has also had an immense impact. He has played strongly in midfield and even filled the void at centre-back a couple of times. Carrick’s calm nature in the middle of the park and his piercing forward passes has brought dynamism to the side. The captain, Wayne Rooney, and striker Robin van Persie are on a scoring run and their goals have propelled the Reds to third place. Van Persie started the season poorly, but is finding his goal scoring touch again. Not too many defenders can deal with Rooney and van Persie when they are in form.
Angel Di Maria hit the ground running the moment he donned the Manchester United shirt. It has been a good start for him; he has a number of assists and three goals to his name. The versatile midfielder has brought some spark to the team with his daring runs, dribbles, set-piece deliveries and passing ability. Daley Blind and Ander Herrera have been solid for their new side, despite early injury setbacks. Their work rate and ability to pick passes from midfield have been delightful to watch. Luke Shaw has shown that the pressure of playing at a big club like Manchester United would not get to him. When the young English boy joined the Red Devils from Southampton many thought he would need time to settle in, but it has taken virtually no time at all. The left-back has been impressive so far. Shaw has been a perfect replacement for Patrice Evra, who joined Juventus over the summer. The 19-year-old has the ability to attack and get back to defend. Another defender who joined the club, Marcos Rojo, has had no problems settling in. The former Sporting Lisbon man has been a rock at the back, and has been consistent up to this point. Rojo is calm on the ball and aggressive off of it which has many fans already calling him the new Vidic.
The summer signings have proven fruitful so far, except for Falcao, who has not hit his stride as expected. Having said that, whenever he is on the pitch his movement and eagerness to get himself going has been admirable.
Surprisingly, all of the new signings except for Falcao and Ander Herrera are currently injured. While many have said that if not for all the signings in the summer van Gaal would have struggled, that may not be entirely accurate. When Manchester United trashed Liverpool by a score of 3-0 on Sunday, none of the new summer signings started the match. This just goes to show how well van Gaal has been able to blend what he brought in with the players already at the club, and the system he wants the squad to play. He has brought the confidence of his players back.
With almost half of the season gone van Gaal has had to juggle tactics and line-ups many times due to the injuries suffered within the club. Judging by the pre-season games, van Gaal had intentions of playing the 3-4-3; a system that brought him some success at the World Cup. The system seemed to accommodate Rooney, Juan Mata and Robin van Persie; three of his best players in their best positions. The players did not look comfortable in the system over the pre-season. but the story at the start of the season was worse. Van Gaal explained that the 3-4-3 system required the players to learn a lot of information in a short time, and they just needed more time. He added that it was the best system for the squad he had fit due to the injuries. Rafael, Shaw, Evans, Carrick and others were out at the time.
A 4-3-3 was the next system he deployed as players returned from injury. It would seem the players enjoyed playing in that setup, but as injuries continued to hit the camp and van Gaal had to switch to the 3-4-3 again. This time it would seem again that the players had digested the information about the system. Up to this point the players are adopting and it is looking positive for van Gaal and his men.
With Manchester United getting more players nearing fitness and the winter transfer window just around the corner, the Red Devils appear to be in top form. They should be able to secure Champions League qualification and could even make a run at Manchester City and Chelsea for the title. There is also the FA Cup in the near future, and given their form, who would rule United out of winning a trophy this campaign?
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