Are we over the disappointing draw against Everton yet? Manchester United’s mixed form before the international break remains a concern, but the break has given the players and coaches a chance to reset.
United’s season restarts on Saturday against Leicester City and the Red Devils will be looking to kickstart the campaign with an important victory.
Ahead of the campaign getting back underway, here is a look at five reasons for Manchester United fans to be positive…
Just two points off the top
For all of United’s stuttering to start the season, no team has been able to run away with it through the opening seven games.
United are just two points off leaders Liverpool and Manchester City despite the slip ups.
Last season United had a terrible start and were able to rally back to lead the league by January – before then slipping up.
Despite all the hysteria, United are in a solid position from which to kick on.
The start to the season is always tough and United have come through it relatively unscathed.
United thrive on tough fixtures
The knock against United’s league position is that tougher games are ahead. But these are matches Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s United often thrive on.
In late 2019 United kicked on with wins against Tottenham and Manchester City when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was being written off.
And last season through October and November, the team rallied through a similarly tricky stretch.
United performed well against the top sides last season and will be confident of a strong return this time around.
The side is now full of big game players who will relish these fixtures and they could be more open than against teams who sit deep and defend.
Rashford is back
The biggest reason for optimism right now is the return of Marcus Rashford, at the perfect time.
Rashford scored 21 goals last season and provided 12 assists, a campaign in which he played through with a shoulder injury.
The England international could be the player who knits the team together, with his direct running posing issues for teams and opening up defences.
Rashford has a great record against upcoming opponents Leicester, Liverpool, and City, who he has scored five times against each.
Best yet to come from Sancho
Summer signing Jadon Sancho has barely shown anything at Old Trafford so far. Once he clicks into gear, United will be a lot more dangerous.
Sancho is too good to stay quiet for long. He showed flashes of quality with two assists for England at the weekend.
The winger could become a big contributor over the next couple of months and start to show why he was a player United splashed out a lot of money on.
The best is yet to come with Sancho and United need to be patient. But better days are ahead.
Ronaldo has still got it
Quite clearly Cristiano Ronaldo is not past it. The Portuguese star has five goals already and won both the club and Premier League player of the month award for September.
The challenge is for United to adjust to Ronaldo and learn how to get the best out of him.
But Ronaldo is not the problem. He could become United’s first player in years to score 30 goals and is an absolute machine.
Even at the age of 36, Ronaldo has still got it, and he is going to be a big asset for the club over the course of the campaign.
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