TIt’s been a strange time at Old Trafford. Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s 25% investment in Manchester United has been approved by the Premier League. They have won their last four games in all competitions and are unbeaten this year. They have a young and dynamic front that you may not yet believe could spiral out of control, until the nuts and bolts fall and they ultimately collapse into a pile of shattered possibilities. , it’s starting to look like this: Although it can be very effective. Are things finally starting to look up for United?
Of course, everything is relative. It feels like every detail has to be taken care of. Everything is still subject to multiple interpretations. With the top five teams likely (but not guaranteed) to qualify for next season’s Champions League, United are still sixth in the Premier League, but at least four points clear of seventh-placed Newcastle. is attached. They are eight points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa, but the gap would have been even wider had Scott McTominay not scored the winning goal in the 86th minute against Villa Park last Sunday. Two weeks ago against the Wolves, they conceded three goals in the final 20 minutes, but at least won 4-3.
No one can claim that we have turned an irreversible corner. United have a goal difference of 0, which puts them worse than the other eight teams going into this weekend. It’s perfectly reasonable to wonder what’s going on and wonder if it’s going to be similar to last season. Last season’s string of narrow wins, many of which came late, perhaps gave an overly positive impression of United’s form. With Arsenal defeating West Ham, United’s 3-0 win at home in the previous match also came into view. And even Newport County made life difficult in the FA Cup.
Therefore, do not draw any definite conclusions. But the truth is that United have scored 17 goals in six games in all competitions this year, with Rasmus Heilund scoring in each of their last five games. The miserable 2-0 defeat at the London Stadium two days before Christmas was one of the most boring and joyless performances in the history of England’s top flight by a nominally elite club, but… The change was remarkable – even though it brought an uneasy feeling of freedom to my back. Something similar happened in this season’s Champions League. There, United’s ferocious spendthrifts looked like a completely different team from the weary, fidgety side of the weekend, like grumpy husbands on a business trip.
Perhaps at the end of the season this period will look like a false dawn, with United’s flaws all too obvious as they achieve decent results. However, it may be seen as the moment when Erik ten Hag’s team showed the heart and courage to overcome their shortcomings and actually start winning games, the moment the rise began. I don’t know. The emotional impact of Ratcliffe’s acquisition before the real and difficult business of rebuilding the club began.
But whatever happens over the next three months, the fact is that a team that seemed lost at the first signs of conflict has found a newfound resilience, at least temporarily. They may have done some stupid things or let some unnecessary goals slip in games that they seem to be in control of, but at the moment they are finding ways to overcome it.
And if this is indeed a moment of tentative revival, that is perhaps the most hopeful front. Marcus Rashford, the eldest of the three at 26, has struggled at times this season, but there should be no doubting his quality. Alejandro Garnacho is a talented but still unpredictable player, which is more than enough for a 19-year-old, but fortunately for United, he seems more than capable of playing on the right. He became a left-winger, allowing Rashford to operate on his preferred flank. Hoylund, on the other hand, was prepared to risk responsibility, but he began to seize opportunities with the unflinching ease of a confident forward. His goal against West Ham, where he created space on the edge of the box and drilled the ball into the bottom corner, was clinically ruthless, while his clinical side-footed volley against Aston Villa saw six He suggested a predatory sharpness inside the yard box.
Perhaps he was lucky, but if he really aimed between Emi Marténez’s legs – and from that distance it seems possible – it would have been an instinctive poacher’s finish. . If he has both elements in his game, he can certainly become a very dangerous forward. His conversion rate of 19% was exceptional (11% was about average), suggesting that the lack of goals early in the season was more to do with him than with the service he was receiving. There is.
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The Danish forward’s relationship with Rashford and Garnacho appears to be key. United have faced the front three of Garnacho, Hyland and Rashford seven times this season, winning all seven times. It’s true that they played together in the 4-3 Champions League defeat to Copenhagen, in which Rashford started on the right and Garnacho on the left, but also in the 2-0 win against United. He was sent off after 42 minutes. Up.
The combined age of the three is 66 years old. All have had unstable careers. But when we play together, we create a balance and a sense of mutual enhancement. Ten Hag must find a way to regain solidity without sacrificing too much attacking freedom, while Rashford and Garnacho have been criticized for failing to fulfill their defensive duties. There are still many things that can go wrong, and nothing is guaranteed. But Ratcliffe’s appearance marks the beginning of a new chapter, and a new page tends to mean hope for the news.
This may not be the forward line anyone at United had planned, but if they had, they wouldn’t have had to spend £160m on Anthony and Jadon Sancho, and surely it would have been spent by now. –But this is the front line. They have it and so far it seems to be working. And it’s been a while since you could say that about anything at Old Trafford.
