The club is performing, the players are enjoying and the fans are having a great time. Is this really a sign of a new dawn at the Theatre of Dreams? Well, the footballing experts have a mixed opinion about that, but the Manchester United supporters do fell that this is their time. Soon after the retirement of legendary Sir Alex Ferguson, the side saw a major dip in their form and since then, the devils have completely lost their track.
The former Everton boss David Moyes was supposed to carry on the legacy, but the club became nothing more than a mid-table club under the Scottish gaffer. Then came the renowned Dutch professional Louis van Gaal, who in his very first season helped the side to qualify for the Champions League, and soon after that, his philosophies sunk United’s ship in the Premier League.
Then finally came the ‘Special One’ at the Old Trafford and the supporters sensed a new life at the Old Trafford. The Portuguese tactician arrived at the Old Trafford after finishing his second stint with Chelsea on a low point, but everyone was aware of the quality he is capable of delivering. A proven winner is what Jose Mourinho is and this is what we all expect this term at the Theatre of Dreams.
Manchester United have been criticized a lot lately for their poor judgement in the transfer market. While under Louis van Gall, the side almost spent 250 million to bring the players like Di Maria, Darmian, Blind and more, but very few of them became a first team regular for the side. Even under Jose Mourinho, the side spent a world record fee to bring Paul Pogba back to Manchester United and many carped the move stating that the player is not worth it, but it seems like the new manager is his own prince.
Even after lacking a Champions League football, Mourinho managed to bring the players like Eric Bailly, Mkhitaryan, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and practically speaking, they all are great additions for the team.
Firstly, the newcomer from Villarreal, Eric Bailly; his transfer fee was booed by the opposition fans, but the 22-year-old, with his brilliant performances, has already won two man of the match awards for United and one of it came against Leicester City. The 22-year-old is already being compared to United’s greatest; Nemanja Vidic.
Besides that, the trio; Zlatan; Mkhitaryan and Paul Pogba needs no introduction. Ibrahimovic has been working like a 24-year-old personnel and his sheer dedication to play for Jose Mourinho can be clearly seen in his interviews. Besides that, Pogba is looking all confident and the kind of performance he gave against Southampton was a clear glimpse that he is here to win it all.
All the new signings have brought back the optimism and the other players too are looking confident alongside those newcomers. The players like Ander Herrera, Marouane Fellaini and Antonio Valencia too are looking rejuvenated these days.
Goals have been coming and the defenders are doing their jobs as well. To make it simpler, we can easily observe the amount of work De Gea had to do during these games. While under van Gaal or even under Moyes, De Gea was made to work like a horse. From the past two seasons, Southampton came to Old Trafford and clinched away all the points, but the course was completely changed. Even the team like Bournemouth tested De Gea heavily last season, but they barely created a vicious chance to test De Gea. Yes, they scored the goal, and we cannot really blame anyone for that; that actually was a great move.
Ander Herrera has found a new role under Mourinho and even Fellaini, who played a more of an attacking role for van Gaal found a footing as a deeper midfielder against the Saints. So, it is safe to say that the team is improving; we still have miles to go to reach the paramount, but the process has been started and already, the side is giving away a performance that the crowd could actually cheer.
