A New Era

Consecutive losses at Old Trafford for the first time since 2002. 9th in the table. 6 wins in 15 Premier League games. What on Earth is happening to Manchester United?

The Red Devils have been a shadow of their former selves this season and seem to have capitulated their hard fought trophy before we've even reached Christmas. It is true that any club would suffer having lost the seemingly eternal presence of the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson but even the most die-hard naysayers would be surprised by the depths that United have plunged to this season. While the rest of the contenders have substantially improved, United is now suffering from self-made problems throughout the team.

Goalkeepers
In David De Gea Manchester United are blessed with an excellent young goalkeeper who is only going to get better. Gone are the days when aerial bombardment would lead to hearts in mouths, De Gea has turned into a confident and calming presence at the back ably deputized by Lindegaard and Amos. Unfortunately for him, he has been unable to build a relationship with a consistent back four.

Defence
Evra, Vidic and Ferdinand - all world class in their primes - are past their peaks. Speculation is rife that Ferdinand is set to retire at the end of this season and Evra seems to be on his way to Monaco. Vidic clearly still has something to offer, although he can no longer be expected to man-handle every striker he comes across. Our ageing defence means that a high line, high pressing game is not an option. What's more, Buttner is simply not good enough to be starting for a team that has Premier League and Champions League aspirations. It's not all bad, Rafael continues to develop into an elite full back and Smalling has impressed this season. Phil Jones and Jonny Evans have the makings of a top centre back pairing. A couple of signings should patch up the defence but it is slightly further forward that requires real investment.

Midfield
It is damning that in Carrick's absence, Jones (a 21 year old centre back) and Giggs (a 40 year old former left winger) have been United's best midfielders. Manchester United's midfield is sorely lacking creativity, drive and tenacity and the addition of Fellaini, who has yet to settle, on deadline day has simply not been enough. The likes of Cleverley and Anderson are not terrible players but struggle to impose themselves. The truth is that all of these players would be more suited to a midfield three, which would not only cancel out the numeric disadvantage that the Red Devils are always up against but allow for greater division labour. In a trio any combination of our midfielders would be greater than the sum of its parts. Carrick as a deep-lying passer, with Fellaini as a box-to-box midfielder and Kagawa as the creator could yet be the answer to the midfield malaise. Despite this, without potentially world class signings, United will continue to suffer against top opposition.

Unfulfilled potential

Wings
There has been an excessive focus on wing-play in Moyes' reign so far despite a lack of form from our wingers. The truth is that this is probably more to do with the team being short on confidence and looking for the easy ball wide rather than any explicit tactical instruction. Ashley Young has been poor since his first couple of months at Old Trafford, while Nani continues to flatter to deceive. Antonio Valencia's pace and strength can give any full back trouble but his one-footedness makes him very predictable. All of them have shown glimpses of their quality in the past but Moyes needs to be decisive over which of them have futures at the club. Januzaj, Zaha and Kagawa, who is learning how to play wide, have added some freshness and competition to an area of the team that was starting to go stale.

Forwards
On first glance this is the best stocked part of the squad. Robin Van Persie, Wayne Rooney, Javier Hernandez and Danny Welbeck form a selection of forwards that is the envy of most of Europe. Van Persie is a striker at the peak of his powers but was perhaps not the best signing for United. In many ways he resembles a Football Manager signing - identify an available top class talent, ignore the long term ramifications. The season before he was signed, Rooney scored 34 goals in 44 appearances playing as a lone front man. Kagawa was signed to add some creativity behind Rooney, while failed moves for Eden Hazard and Lucas Moura clearly show that Sir Alex was looking to add goals and incision from the flanks. Sir Alex knew the team needed more quality and after failing with other targets and could not resist picking up Van Persie when he became available. The signing meant that Rooney had to play deeper and forced Kagawa out wide. On top of that it prevents Manchester United from playing three in midfield. For David Moyes it presents a real conundrum - does he drop either of his two best players for the potential benefit of the team as a whole?

Manager
To top it all off sprinkle in some David Moyes. Moyes got the job because his 11 years at Everton proved that he was able to build something both long term and stable. However, he may have been a tad naive in believing that he and his coaching team could easily make the jump to one of the biggest clubs in football. Coaches like Rene Meulensteen had been crucial to United's success over the years but were unceremoniously dumped when the 'Chosen One' came in. Furthermore, the dithering in the summer window was hard to watch and the club's transfer policy needs to be addressed before the next window. Moyes has made some mistakes and at times seems unable to motivate his players and unsure of how best to use his squad. But it took someone of the calibre of Sir Alex to inspire, cajole and drag this motley assortment of players over the finishing line. Moyes needs the funds and the time to build his own squad and cut away all that he deems unnecessary. It may take some time but with the backing of the board and Old Trafford at large, he is sure to grow into the manager that United need him to be.