The David Moyes era was, thankfully, short-lived. Now, under Dutch mastermind Louis van Gaal, there is a renewed sense of swagger at Old Trafford and a growing expectation that Manchester United will be back where they belong this season – at the top of the Premier League.
What happened last season
So, er, yeah, David Moyes. That happened. That actually happened. Remember when people thought that, because Sir Alex Ferguson picked him out of all the managers in all of the world to be his successor, he might be able to take Manchester United to title number 21? That hope fell flatter than Steven Gerrard did that one time against Chelsea.
In all seriousness, last season was an absolute disaster for United. Moyes was frogmarched out of Old Trafford after just 10 months, having successfully turned the biggest club in the world into a laughing stock.
For the first time since 1990, they failed to qualify for a European competition, and they finished seventh overall in the Premier League – a staggering fall from grace, and not just because of where they ended up, but because of the embarrassing manner in which they got there.
What happened in the off-season
Louis van Gaal came in, that’s what happened, and the enigmatic Dutchman has quickly gotten to work in his mission to resurrect a giant of English football that, while perhaps isn’t quite fallen, is certainly reeling after a big, unexpected and unedifying smack to the gob.
United has had a good pre-season. Their tour of the United States and participation in the International Champions Cup was a roaring success in both footballing and commercial terms, even if van Gaal isn’t impressed with the way the club puts the latter over the former far too often.
They are undefeated in friendlies and take on Valencia at home in their final warm-up clash before the season proper begins, and the real hard work starts.
In terms of transfer traffic, there has been a lot of huffing and puffing but not an enormous amount of action. Left-back Luke Shaw and Spanish midfielder Ander Herrera were brought in from Southampton and Athletic Bilbao respectively for a total that nudges the £60 million mark, and while that’s a lot of dosh for two young players they both fill gaping needs in United’s squad.
But things are looking pretty thin at the back, and fans will be hoping van Gaal has more up his sleeve.
The Dutchman, if reports are to be believed, has already set about trimming the fat from his squad – he has apparently told Marouane Fellaini, Wilfried Zaha, Nani, Shinji Kagawa and Will Keane that they can go if offers come in for them.
Plenty of players have already gone, including Patrice Evra (Juventus), Nemanja Vidic (Inter) and Rio Ferdiand (QPR), who together made up three-quarters of United’s first-choice back four for what felt like forever.
Why Manchester United fans should be excited about the 2014/15 season
Because Louie VG knows what he’s doing. If you need any proof besides his glittering resume and general aura, then just cast your mind back a few weeks to the World Cup, when he put his balls on the line by sending Tim Krul into goals for the penalty shootout in the Netherlands’ quarter-final against Costa Rica.
That very easily could have gone horribly wrong.
And yet it didn’t. The mere making of that call pretty much spooked Costa Rica out. It’s that sort of uber-confident decision-making that Manchester United so desperately needs right now. David Moyes was simply not capable of managing the egos and expectation that comes with the job.
Comparatively, van Gaal is almost tailor-made for it.
From a tactical point of view there are few in world football wiser than him. With assistant Ryan Giggs by his side, he should know the lay of the land in Manchester. If he can get everyone behind him and keep them there, and the early suggestions are that he’s halfway there already, then United could be on the path back to the top before you know it.
The main man that can carry Manchester United’s 2014/15 hopes
Of the two big-name signings United has made, only one is expected to make an immediate and significant impact – Ander Herrera. And that’s no slight on Luke Shaw, who – if he backs up his hefty pricetag with by replicating the kind of performances that convinced the club to spend such an amount on him – can probably put a mortgage on the left-back position for the rest of his career.
But the 24-year-old Spaniard is exactly what Manchester United has been crying out for. Not just this season, but for several. In the out years of Ferguson’s dynasty, the calls for fresh creative blood in midfield only grew louder and louder. Herrera has settled quickly, laying on three assists in United’s 7-0 thrashing of LA Galaxy in pre-season.
His penchant for picking the right pass going forward and ability to dictate the tempo of a game, qualities he were lauded for in Spain, will be crucial – especially since last season in La Liga, he played in almost three times as many through-balls as any United player did.
Verdict – Title challenge
Surely. Surely! A club like Manchester United can’t have two shocking seasons in a row. With van Gaal at the helm it’s impossible it happening – barring some sort of unforeseen crisis he should have them in the mix with the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal in battling it out for the title.
They may not win it this time around – the other challengers are very strong, of course – but they’ll be in with a shot. More importantly, they’ll feel like the real Manchester United again.
Manchester United team to compete in 2014/15
Goalkeeper: (40) Ben Amos, (1) De Gea, (50) Sam Johnstone, (13) Anders Lindegaard.Defender: (6) Jonny Evans, (4) Phil Jones, (2) Rafael, (na) Luke Shaw, (12) Chris Smalling, (30) Guillermo Valera.
Midfield: (na) Ander Herrera, (na) Anderson, (16) Michael Carrick, (23) Tom Cleverley, (31) Marouane Fellanini, (24) Darren Fletcher, (44) Adnan Januzaj, (26) Shinji Kagawa, (35) Jesse Lingard, (8) Mata, (17) Nani, (32) Nick Powell, (25) Antonio Valencia, (18) Ashley Young.
Forwards: (21) Angelo Henriquez, (14) Javier Hernandez, (34) Tom Lawrence, (10) Wayne Rooney, (20) Robin van Persie, (19) Danny Welbeck, (29) Wilfried Zaha.
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