With the 2022/23 season finally over, it is time to tie the bow on our Manchester United Power Rankings.
We published our previous Power Rankings at the mid-season mark, with Lisandro Martinez topping the charts.
Manchester United have since gone onto achieve both of the club’s main targets, winning a trophy and securing a top four finish.
The Power Rankings top 10 tells its own story, with many defenders featuring – although there is no place for goalkeeper David de Gea.
READ: Confirmed Manchester United transfers in, out, loans, releases, youth for 2023/24
Updated Manchester United Power Rankings
1) Casemiro (+1)
Top of the charts is Brazil international captain Casemiro who has led Manchester United’s turnaround with spirited displays in the heart of the midfield.
He is everything United were crying out for from a midfielder, and more. He scored seven goals and provided six assists this season, contributing in an attacking sense as well.
The way he has been playing, Casemiro is United’s most influential midfielder since Roy Keane, while Gary Neville picked him out as the Premier League’s ‘signing of the season’.
2) Bruno Fernandes (+1)
Bruno Fernandes finished the season really strongly, with goals against Chelsea, Manchester City, Fulham, and a vital winner at home to Aston Villa.
Fernandes created more goalscoring chances than any other player in the Premier League, and according to FotMob data, he was the highest rated player in the division across the whole season.
It doesn’t feel like Fernandes has had the credit his performances really desvered. He is United’s second highest scorer this campaign with 14 goals – and has a further 16 assists.
3) Marcus Rashford (+4)
Manchester United’s official player of the season was Marcus Rashford, and he would also be worthy of sitting number one on this list.
Rashford scored a personal best 30 goals and also added another 10 assists. This was a season of huge personal development for the England ace, who netted only five times last season.
The challenge now is to repeat his feats, and he will have extra help, with United expected to sign more attacking players this summer.
4) Luke Shaw (+4)
Luke Shaw was this week named as Manchester United’s best player of the season by sports data outlet PFF.
The left-back reclaimed his spot from the new threat from Tyrell Malacia, and also stunned everybody with his adaptation to playing centre-back.
United moved quickly to tie Shaw to a contract extension earlier this year, and he has become one of the first names on Erik ten Hag’s teamsheet, wherever he is playing.
5) Lisandro Martinez (-4)
Unfortunately an injury ended Lisandro Martinez’s season early, otherwise he would have featured higher on the list. And perhaps that’s not entirely fair to him.
Martinez played a key role in changing the attitude in Manchester United’s dressing room, and implementing Erik ten Hag’s defensive style.
He made the critics who wrote him off after a couple of games look totally laughable, and he also managed to win a World Cup medal along the way.
6) Aaron Wan-Bissaka (new entry)
Aaron Wan-Bissaka was nowhere near this list early in the season, he could barely get minutes, let alone a start. In 2023 he has looked better than ever.
Wan-Bissaka has reclaimed his place as a regular and was selected for the FA Cup final ahead of Diogo Dalot, which seemed unthinkable early in the season.
There is now no need for United to sign another right-back, wth the defender progressing well under Erik ten Hag’s coaching.
7) Raphael Varane (+2)
This season we have seen the real Raphael Varane, who has thrived, whoever he has partnered. Varane was excellent in the cup final, keeping Erling Haaland shackled.
Varane has given up international football too, which will help prolong his Manchester United career. His partnership with Lisandro Martinez has looked like the best the club have had since Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic.
8) Victor Lindelof (new entry)
Victor Lindelof waited patiently for a consistent run in the side this season and when it arrived, he grabbed his opportunity.
Lindelof’s run of form after Martinez’s injury was arguably his best since he came to the club in 2017. United are lucky to have the Swede as a back-up, on this form he would start for most clubs. The challenge will be to keep him long-term.
9) Alejandro Garnacho (+1)
Alejandro Garnacho‘s debut season did not disappoint at all, from his first goal against Real Sociedad which came from a Cristiano Ronaldo assist, to his winner at Craven Cottage.
2023 was even better, even with an injury mixed in. Garnacho, 18, is electric and lifts the Old Trafford crowd every second he is on the pitch.
Garnacho is blossoming into a young star, and looks like he might even be able to handle the pressure of the now vacant number seven shirt.
10) Antony (new entry)
We feel inclined to stick up for Antony amid the criticism he has received from the press, who look at simply his price tag, and his moderate number of goals and assists.
Yes, there is work to do, but Antony makes Manchester United a more exciting and more dynamic team. He holds the team’s shape out on the right, and frequently wins his individual battles.
He was a key absence in the cup final, already showing an ability to step up in big games, like his memorable winner at home to Barcelona.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
