Manchester United bosses are quietly satisfied with their progress after securing three straight wins for the first time in 18 months – but know there is still much to do before the men’s team can compete regularly at the top of the table.
The team’s recent run of impressive results has not been met with overt celebrations in the executive offices at the Carrington training ground. Rather, it has reassured the club hierarchy that the tough decisions taken are starting to have an impact on the pitch and strengthened their resolve to continue with the long-term plan.
Ruben Amorim has targeted a place in Europe for next season, and certainly chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox would be satisfied with a top-six finish. As Amorim continues to develop his squad, no one at the club is getting too high when the team are on a positive run, or too low when results are disappointing.
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Crucially, while there is abundant noise outside Old Trafford calling for some heavy investment in the squad in January, among the executives there is a determination to stick to the plan. United are not expected to spend big in the New Year.
A new defensive midfield player is the priority to strengthen the squad, after last summer’s focus on attacking areas. But because a No 6 is likely to mean a significant level of investment – with Elliot Anderson, Adam Wharton and Carlos Baleba all under consideration – it is much more likely to be addressed in the summer, as part of a broader review of the squad and the overall wage bill.
The strategy was successful in the summer in terms of reducing a bloated and expensive squad, moving on many of the big-earning players who weren’t part of Amorim’s plans. But there is also an awareness that the futures of a number of Manchester United’s highest-profile players are still up in the air.
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FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from Manchester United’s match against Brighton in the Premier League
However determined Marcus Rashford is to pursue his career away from Manchester, he still has two-and-a-half years remaining on his United contract. Harry Maguire and Casemiro are both out of contract in the summer, and so any decision to let either move on would free up a significant chunk in the squad salary budget. Rasmus Hojlund’s substantive move to Napoli is only guaranteed should Antonio Conte’s side make the Champions League.
All of those considerations will impact what incoming transfer business United can do, but there is a determination to avoid some of the recruitment mistakes of the past, which saw too many big names on big salaries sitting in the big Old Trafford stands.
Why Lammens has made a big impact
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Take a look at Senne Lammens’ confident Premier League debut for Manchester United against Sunderland
The summer focus on strengthening the attack seems to be paying dividends. Manchester United’s xG has actually been lower over the last three matches compared to the first six games of the season – but the statistics make it clear United are being much more clinical in front of goal, with a very impressive 20 per cent of their shots producing goals this month, compared to just 7.4 per cent previously.
The style of play has been tweaked, too, with United going more direct. Over the last three matches, they’ve averaged less than 44 per cent possession compared with over 53 per cent for the rest of the season. And with Senne Lammens between the posts, he has kicked long for almost 85 per cent of the time, compared to 43 per cent and 56 per cent under Andre Onana and Altay Bayindir, respectively.
United had no plans to change goalkeeper in the summer, despite their long-term interest in Lammens. But Onana’s dip in form, and Jadon Sancho’s wages being removed from the overall bill, meant a deal could be done for the 23-year-old.
The stats suggest he has made a difference on the pitch. A 78.6 per cent save rate is more than 11 per cent better than Onana’s, and more than 25 per cent ahead of Bayindir.
Man Utd moving in the right direction
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On his podcast, Gary Neville said last week was Ruben Amorim’s best at Manchester United following wins against Liverpool and Brighton
It is also significant that the focus on Amorim’s chosen formation of three central defenders has waned.
But there have been signs in the last few games that the Portuguese coach has adopted a more flexible approach to his team structure. Even though Manchester United line up with three at the back, that sometimes becomes a four when they are defending, with one or both of the wing-backs dropping deeper.
An increasingly positive mood is becoming obvious to those inside Carrington. After the defeat to Brentford last month, it would have been characteristic of the recent United past for stories to start leaking out about certain players being unhappy, or others losing faith in the head coach. There were no such stories this time, which suggests there is greater unity in the squad than has been seen for a while, and a widespread buy-in to the coaching methods.
United’s bosses know they are still in the early stages of their revolution. And they expect some rocky roads ahead as they search for stability and, ultimately, silverware.
But, for the time being at least, all is quiet at Carrington, as the club’s power brokers feel things are moving in the right direction.
