The six things Manchester United need to fix this summer

Choose a new captain.

In retrospect, Ralf Rangnick should have kept Harry Maguire on for the entirety of Atletico Madrid’s defeat. Maguire is a threat at set-pieces, and Rangnick should have understood that his removal, as well as the handing over of the captain’s armband, would bring some excitement to a crowd that had mocked Marcus Rashford’s substitute earlier this season.

Maguire could already be at St George’s Park, back in the England camp, where he belongs. Players can ignore social media noise, but when it is reinforced by spectators, there isn’t always a way back. Many United supporters and several of his teammates do not think Maguire is a capable captain, and the 18-day break between matches will not prevent the subject from coming up during Rangnick’s next press conference in two weeks.

Bruno Fernandes, a regular starter who will have spent two-and-a-half years in the United pressure cooker when next season begins, has captained the club on several occasions and would be an obvious long-term successor to the armband.

Edinson Cavani was named in Uruguay’s team for their World Cup qualifiers against Peru and Chile yesterday night, thus he will most likely miss United’s encounter against Leicester on April 2. This season, Cavani has not played in any of the post-internationals matches.

On July 1, the 35-year-old is one of five players whose contracts will be shredded. The others are Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata, and Lee Grant. Making a last-minute offer to keep any of them would be pointless.

Sell, sell, sell

It is said that a bad decision is preferable to indecision. Lingard, Anthony Elanga, and Donny van de Beek all testified to United’s indecisiveness last summer. United will have little choice but to cut an underperforming squad this summer, especially if they fail to finish fourth.

Every recent United manager, with the exception of David Moyes, has overseen a mass exodus during their first summer in command. Ander Herrera, Romelu Lukaku, Chris Smalling, Alexis Sanchez, and Matteo Darmian all left in the summer of 2019, and a same level of resolve is needed.

Eric Bailly and Phil Jones have overstayed their welcome, Anthony Martial has only had two strong seasons in the last seven, and Aaron Wan-Bissaka is a £50 million misfit. Erik ten Hag’s appointment could give Van de Beek and Dean Henderson new leases of life, although Van de Beek preferred Everton in August. He is now embroiled in a tense relegation battle.

Recruit in the image of the management

Whether it’s Mauricio Pochettino or Ten Hag, one of the few guarantees is that United will have a distinct personality. Ten Hag was successful at Ajax with a 4-2-3-1 configuration, and when Frenkie de Jong was taken away from him by Barcelona, Ajax adopted the Total Football-inspired 4-3-3. Tottenham’s pinnacle was when Pochettino’s side played an aggressive 4-2-3-1 and attacked with a back three, utilizing defensive midfielder Eric Dier’s versatility as he dropped to center-back.

United will have conducted due research on their next management appointment, but regardless of who is hired, the recruitment strategy must focus on the team as a whole. When the top recruiters in the Premier League analyze the benefit a signing will have on their colleagues, United has historically had a preference for individualistic acquisitions.

Luis Diaz’s inclusion in a forward line with a consistent style of play could be crucial in the title chase, as he relieves the pressure on Liverpool’s older strikers.

Standards must be upheld.

United’s condition is so dire that they may have to wait for Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp to leave if they are to become title contenders. They might bemoan their lack of luck, but they had previous opportunities to appoint either coach.

A title challenge next season appears implausible now, but United would be unwise to accept for another steady growth as if they were once again managed by a manager from the Norwegian league. They should be led by a renowned coach and tasked with becoming the backbone of a potentially successful team (Fernandes, David de Gea, Raphael Varane and Cristiano Ronaldo).

There are bouncy youth (Jadon Sancho, Anthony Elanga, and Hannibal Mejbri), committed assets (Fred, Diogo Dalot, and Scott McTominay), and a rising academy pool to pull from for the next manager.

Re-establish contact with supporters

Because Maguire is from Yorkshire, his appeal to some Greater Manchester fans was always going to be limited. He was also a pricey acquisition who was promoted to captain too soon, and he hasn’t had the same transformative impact at United’s main competitors as Virgil van Dijk and Ruben Dias, who were brought in the year before and following Maguire, respectively.

Rashford was born in Wythenshawe and grew up as a United fan who progressed through the club’s system. Rashford’s relationship with certain United fans has deteriorated less than six years after his enthralling career and Premier League debuts. Rashford’s form has been a source of dissatisfaction among the supporters for the past 15 months.

United emphasized the importance of players making time for fans as part of the planned ‘culture reset.’ The pandemic has strained their relationship, but whatever of the outcome, there is a chasm between them after games at Old Trafford. As they emerge from the tunnel, some security men almost genuflect to the players, while others continue straight ahead. Rangnick’s first match in command, United also misread the room by forgetting to introduce him to the crowd.

An open pre-season training day at Old Trafford, which was formerly a yearly event but was last held in 2010, would be appreciated.