Ever since Jose Mourinho swooped in to relieve the Old Trafford faithful of their painstaking experience under Louis Van Gaal last year, fans have been treated to one blockbuster signing after another. Mourinho was unveiled as the manager to take over amidst much fanfare and up until now, he has lived up to the expectations of the supporters. His ability to attract players has been a big bonus and aligned with the appeal of Manchester United, the duo has managed to sign some of the top talents despite not featuring in the Champions League this term.
Mourinho has a task on his hands of resurrecting a United side which had lost its way to an extent under Louis Van Gaal’s philosophy. Players were guilty of lacking in ideas and mostly moved the ball sideways without any incision or drive in their play. They looked toothless in attack and as a result failed to qualify for the Champions League losing out to cross-town rivals Manchester City in a tight race for the fourth spot. After missing out on a berth in the elite Champions League, Mourinho will take this opportunity to let his players adapt to their surroundings and fit into his game plan gradually and make a concerted effort to lift the Premier League title this year.
Mourinho has mostly looked to add personnel to his team who are capable of fighting for a spot in the starting eleven. He has added Eric Bailly to bolster his defensive ranks and despite Mourinho stressing on the fact that the defender might not be ready for the Premier League, he is expected to feature heavily. He has also pulled off a coup in the form of Zlatan Ibrahimovic who has been captured on a free transfer and will most certainly add an x-factor so badly missing on the team last season. Henrikh Mkhitaryan has been signed from Borussia Dortmund and will instill his pace and trickery in their quest to solve their goal-scoring woes.
But understandably the transfer saga which has captured the imagination of the footballing fraternity is Pogba’s move to United and with the deal rumoured to be nearing its completion, it would propel the Red Devils as title favourites.
But before league action gets underway, Manchester United will taste the first slice of competitive action against Leicester City in the FA Community Shield. While Pogba is unlikely to feature from the start, there are rumours of Manchester United wanting to bring him on for an amount of time many. But the other big name stars will look to get accustomed to the English playing conditions in front of the filled up stands of the Wembley Stadium.
Manchester United are expected to line-up in their preferred 4-2-3-1 formation.
