Manchester United made a brave decision this summer as they finally accepted their mistakes when they went for David Moyes and Luis Van Gaal in a bid to bring solidity and stability after the momentous departure of Sir Alex Ferguson. Both the experiments failed and the club decided to go for the instant fix in Jose Mourinho and his brand of superstar football. In a season where City appointed Guardiola and Chelsea appointed Antonio Conte, United made a statement of their own.
And things looked rosy in the beginning as United set the pace early on along with City winning matches at a canter. But after an early Manchester derby setback, they seemed to stutter and lost thrice in a row. It was a minor blip and something Jose would have envisaged given the change in the team personnel.
Though Mourinho hasn’t yet zeroed in on his best eleven right now, he has taken tough calls already. Relegating Rooney to the bench he has shown that he is willing to go the extra yard for success, as he has always done throughout his career.
There will be alterations along the way as it is obvious with the huge squad at his disposal but these are the set of players who will be in the starting eleven more often than not for the Red Devils.
IDEAL MANCHESTER UNITED STARTING ELEVEN (4-2-3-1)
DEFENCE
David De Gea is the undisputed No.1 and is a huge part of their defensive backline, time and again coming to their rescue over the last few years. Antonio Valencia has been impressive in the right back position and until Mourinho decides to bring in reinforcements, he is the first choice. Eric Bailly and Chris Smalling have been earmarked as the ideal duo for this season, but Blind’s form might see him being rotated often. Luke Shaw, when fit is likely to come back at left-back.
MIDFIELD
Paul Pogba is likely to be the main man in midfield and he thrives in a situation where he is given more freedom to express himself. Fellaini started well in the double pivot alongside him but has been seemingly upstaged by Ander Herrera since. The No.10 role will be a subject of a headache for the boss and in the long run, Henrikh Mkhitaryan will be the best choice in the role but Rooney is expected to be given a fair chance to prove his detractors wrong.
ATTACK
Martial and Rashford will compete for a position on the wing, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic nailed on for the lone striker’s role. Juan Mata has redeemed himself as far as Mourinho is concerned and is a good bet for the right-wing role.
