Fansided

EPL: Is Manchester United on the Road to Recovery?

By Geoff Nichols

facebooktwitterreddit

EPL: Are Manchester United on the road to recovery?

Three games ago and the statistic that Manchester United’s start to the EPL was their worst since 1986-87 was being paraded more than the new Jurassic World trailer. With both, loyal fans were plainly trying to hide their concern, but everyone could see the fear in their eyes of what was to come.

Fortunately for Manchester United (and hopefully for dinosaur enthusiasts also) the fears have proven to be somewhat premature. Two wins on the bounce for United, which is strangely uncommon recently, have propelled them to fourth place in the EPL and their recent win away to Arsenal suggested they were turning their form around.

We take a look at whether this Manchester United recovery is just a false dawn disguising another disappointing season or if in reality the first ten games had lulled us all into a false sense of security and Louis van Gaal has turned his side into world beaters.

Fourth in the EPL

You can talk about the records of previous seasons until you are blue in the face, but the fact of the matter is that a third of the way into the EPL season, Manchester United are sitting are fourth place in the table. It is not really relevant comparing their win-loss ratio to that of 1986-87, much like Chelsea will not complain if they finish second on 82 points when that would have won them the title in 1871.

It is still a little jarring when you load up the Manchester United team sheet before a game and see names you vaguely recognise

The EPL table is very tightly bunched at the moment, aside from runaway leaders Chelsea. Whilst Man City look set to join them, there is room for any team to go on a run and take hold of that third spot. If United were to finish third this year I think this would represent a success and progression and many fans would have taken it at the start of the season.

Players are returning to fitness and form

The injury crisis that has plagued United is almost laughable and they seem to be through the worst of it. The number of defenders spending more time with the medical staff than on the training pitch has been horrendous, but to their credit they have made things work.

The flexibility with which they rotate between four and five at the back, which by the way wouldn’t be so great in the longer term, is benefitting them at the moment as they are able to adapt based on who is available.

Stability is a first eleven almost always brings with it more consistent results so it will be interesting to see if this happens at United. On paper their first eleven and even their bench is strong and if they can put that team out fifteen out of the remaining twenty four games of the season then they might be a different proposition entirely.

Even players who have been tainted by the Moyes reign of terror and disappointment seem to be regaining to semblance of dignity under van Gaal. Fellaini has discovered that sticking to what he knows and playing the physical game is why he was signed and it is what he is good at.

Ashley Young also seems to be benefitting from the best of being deemed more useful than Nani (arguably not that much of compliment) and has featured in the side on a number of occasions. Once again I come back to stability in the first eleven; however, as I think van Gaal needs to settle on personnel.

This is especially true given that United are now only fighting on two fronts. A rotation player seeing about 50% game time is only going to play twenty games for United this season, which really isn’t enough to be part of the team dynamic.

It is also important not to forgot the consistent performers in the United side this season and much of last that almost go unnoticed in the sea of questions. David de Gea has emerged as a top, top shot stopper. One of the best in the EPL, no doubt. Wayne Rooney has also excelled despite the debates that rage on about his influence for club and country. Both are key men in the rebuilding process.

Still no real depth to the squad

It is still a little jarring when you load up the Manchester United team sheet before a game and see names you vaguely recognise. Not only are these names occupying places on the bench, but at the start of this season Louis van Gaal has had to resort to picking youth players in the starting line-up.

More from Premier League

We knew at the start of the season that United were going to be defensively short in numbers, but Tyler Blackett and Paddy McNair could still have hardly believed how significant a role they would both have had in the first team.

When United travelled to play Arsenal last weekend their back three consisted of these two inexperienced youngsters led by Chris Smalling. The end of that sentence may just be the world’s shortest horror story, but incredibly they were not exposed and went on to win the game 2-1.

Young striker James Wilson must be even more perplexed at the situation he finds himself in given the wealth of attacking options United possess. Elevated to a starting place against Stoke may seem admirable from Louis van Gaal in that he trusts his younger players, it doesn’t quite provide the fear factor of a Dwight Yorke or a Ruud van Nistlerooy (let alone a Falcao, Rooney or Di Maria.)

Rebuilding their fear factor

Ultimately what is most needed at Old Trafford is, as with most things, the hardest to come by. Their long-term ambition will certainly be to return to a club that is feared, not only in the EPL, but across Europe. When your opponents think you are beatable, then that tends to be what starts to happen.

The reverse is also true however, as when you face a team who come into the match thinking you are unbeatable then often beat themselves. During Sir Alex Ferguson’s illustrious tenure at the club, lower league sides wouldn’t be given a sniff of beating United.

Not in the media by the pundits and not by the managers and this translated to what happened on the pitch. The belief inside United was that of invincibility and the aura that this perpetuated for every other side in Europe was enough to win some games on reputation alone. To return to their former glory, United will need to be patient but ruthless in rebuilding this fear factor.

More from FanSided

Home/Premier League