Manchester United have signed almost all the players they had their eyes on, and seem to go march on further in a prime fashion under the new manager after the club’s 5-2 win against Galatasaray in Gothenburg, Sweden.
The club and fans are happy with the prospect of being the potential contenders of the Premier League this season. However, that being said, the team still needs some fixing at their “rebuilding job” and that too especially at the back line.

Red Devils struggled against Borussia Dortmund in their pre-season match in China. They lacked chemistry up in attack and back in the defence too. The defence in particular seems to be the major problem since United’s downfall in 2013.

Jose Mourinho has managed to get Eric Bailly from Villarreal to Old Trafford, which has boosted the morale at the back. United finally has more options with Jones also getting fit and ready to make a difference this season, having spent the majority of the last season out due to injury.

Luke Shaw’s return to the main squad after a horrible injury last season, which kept him out ever since  is the best thing that could have happen to United from the defensive point of view. The Italian centre-back, Leonardo Bonucci, also seems to stay at the club despite the rumours of him being unwanted by Mourinho. Antonio Valencia was spot on with his game and was on fire against Galatasaray on the weekend. The Ecuador international just showed how good he was (and still can be.

The new manager will now have Chris Smalling, Phil Jones, Dailey Blind and Eric Bailly as his main options at the centre-back positions, which gives a lot of linking-up options. On the full back positions, Mourinho can have the likes of Valencia, Shaw, Darmian, Fosu-Mensah etc. to play. Fortunately, Jose doesn’t seem to be too interested in playing Rojo anytime soon, which is also a good news, looking at his display last season.

In my opinion the first choice defensive line-up for United as of current squad should be:

Matteo Darmian (Right Back), Chris Smalling (Centre-Back), Phil Jones (Centre-Back), Luke Shaw (Left Back)-

Matteo Darmian had a good EURO 2016 campaign and has been reportedly given a chance by the manager to prove his worth. And without a doubt, he will cement his place at the club for a longer than the expected time. The potential in the Italian full-back is higher than any defender in the squad currently.

Chris Smalling is very hard to be replaced after a couple of good seasons, which has made him come out at top in his position for both his club and country.

Phil Jones’ return and a possible partnership with Smalling can be a bad news for the other teams. Jones has always been a hardworking player and never backs out from any duty or role given to him. His experience in the Premier League and in general too, will probably get him to start instead of the Ivory Coast international defender for a while.

Luke Shaw is the best option at the left back position. He didn’t play much last season, but his absence was felt immediately after his injury. This season can be a very critical one for the English full-back as it labels him to be the one of the best in his position as it was claimed before he signed for United.