2017/18 Scouting Report — Manchester United
Following a season of wavering success/failure, can Manchester live up to the hype with their new signings and unleash the potential that Paul Pogba has?
Predicted Finish: 3rd place
Top Goalscorer: Lukaku
Most Valuable Player: Pogba
Last season saw United take away a Domestic Cup, a European Cup, and a Premier League undefeated streak of 25 games. For some clubs, this would be an incredible season. For United, it was somewhat average, and for some, poor. This speaks to the expectations surrounding the club, especially coming with the arrival of the star-studded cast. Like City the past few years, they have spent a large amount of money, and they will need to support that with their performances this upcoming season.
This summer, they have replenished positions they were in need of the most. Lindelof is a ball playing Center half, who with Bailly could form a strong partnership. Matic is a great signing, who will slot alongside Carrick or Herrera and will allow Paul Pogba to move forward and give him more freedom. Finally, Romelu Lukaku will have to live up to Zlatan Ibrahimovic, not to mention leaving from Everton where he scored 20+ goals per season and for a fee of 75 million.
There will be a lot of pressure on the Belgian big man this summer, but with solid deliveries and passing from the midfield, Lukaku could easily reproduce some of his statistics from Everton last season. The supporting cast around him are all arguably an upgrade, so it should be much easier for him. Moreover, United’s problem last year was their finishing. Somewhere along the season, United received the nickname “Drawchester United” for a number of draws they played into during the Premier League season. Their style of football might not be flashy at times, but neither was Chelsea’s last season. So who is to say they can’t win the title?
At the moment, I’m not quite sure United has the depth City has in all positions. This is especially important if they want to be firing on all cylinders this season in the Champions League, domestic cups, and of course the Premier League.
Related Story: Top 6 rival rundown- Spurs
I expect United to make a strong title challenge. Nevertheless, if Lukaku goes out of form, I don’t see Pogba, Mkhitaryan, or Rashford scoring an immense amount of goals to make up for his absence. However, for United fans, there is a good reason for optimism this coming season. I see them finishing somewhere in the top three.
At the moment, I see there biggest weakness being at right and left back where they are in lack of a commanding and consistent defender (bar Valencia). If Valencia is to go injured, I see a huge weakness at this position. City currently has great wing backs and wingers who could easily take advantage of United’s weakness here.
Expect their lineup to be something like this:
Lukaku
Rashford — Pogba — Herrera — Mkhitaryan
Matic
Darmian/Blind — Lindelof — Bailly — Valencia
Like last year, expect United to be very difficult to score on, especially following the acquisition and deployment of Matic. He will inevitably be the midfield destroyer they’ve been looking for.
Next: Manchester City FC 2017/18 Player Preview – Yaya Toure
Overall, Manchester United will still be an elite team. After a frustrating season last year, Mourinho’s team addressed what they needed to and head into the season with some momentum. It’s never fun to play United, and it won’t change this season.