Things change quickly in football and for a team like Manchester United, which seems to deal entirely in extremes, they change even quicker.
At the start of September, Erik ten Hag was a goner, this team was ‘hopeless’, players were missing chances, and there was deja vu on the injury front.
Cue two games after the international break, Manchester United have scored ten goals in two games, the tactical system looks secure, and the direction is clear.
In between those two extremes, a true measure of the progress of this United team will be clear in their next game.
Ten Hag’s side travel to Selhurst Park to take on Crystal Palace, a team that was the architect of their worst loss last season but the circumstances are remarkably different this time.
Match breakdown
Last season, when United went to Selhurst Park, it was the husk of the team they are today. Injuries had ravaged the squad, and Ten Hag barely had enough players to field an XI, let alone a full bench.
Palace, on the other hand, were in the middle of their revival under Oliver Glasner, with Michael Olise as their talisman.
It was a classic case of a team on a meteoric rise facing a team in free fall. The 4-0 loss for United was an act of mercy.
Circumstances couldn’t be more different this time around. Ten Hag has already said he’s in a position to have “nice headaches” because of the options available to him.
The team is coming off of scoring seven against Barnsley where many players rediscovered their mojo, most importantly Marcus Rashford.
Meanwhile, the picture isn’t as rosy at Crystal Palace. They are yet to win in the league this season and have been dominated in all but one game, at home to Leicester City.
The Olise-sized hole is yet to be filled, and the likes of Eberechi Eze and Adam Wharton haven’t started the season on fire.
They’ve scored just two goals from open play in the league so far and the three-at-the-back formation is not proving to be quite as effective as it did last season.
United couldn’t have come into this game in better form, and the circumstances around the fixture couldn’t have been much better for Ten Hag’s side to exact their revenge.
Crystal Palace vs Man Utd prediction
Having said all of the above, it might look like United are clear-cut favourites for this tie but only the latter part of that tag is true.
United are favourites, but nobody in that dressing room will think that it’s “clear-cut”. Selhurst Park will be rocking, Palace players pressing like maniacs, and the crowd will feel a lot closer to you than it is when all of that is happening.
United struggled to get out of blocks vs Southampton but the Saints let them off with their wastefulness or that game could have looked very different.
If Palace make them pay and get an early goal, then it will be the true test of this “New United” and their mentality to recover from setbacks.
Revenge will be on the players’ mind and regardless of what Ten Hag says, one eye of his will undoubtedly be on this fixture since the list dropped.
It’s where he had his worst moment as United manager when all hope looked lost. He will now expect that it is where the first chapter in a new successful season is written. That would be poetic.
United in Focus predicts Crystal Palace 1-3 Manchester United
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