There have been signs of progress for Manchester United in the 2020/21 campaign.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has sealed Champions League qualification in back-to-back seasons, something no manager since Sir Alex Ferguson has been able to bring to Old Trafford.
It’s only the bare minimum expectation really, but it represents an improvement on what’s gone before.
There has also been individual improvement in players. We’ve picked out three United stars who have taken big steps forward since the start of the season…
Luke Shaw
Shaw is surely United’s most improved player this season. Some might have expected Alex Telles to take his spot, but that competition has pushed the Englishman on to a new level.
The way he kept Mo Salah quiet at Anfield in January seemed to make many pundits sit up and take notice.
The praise of his performance that day just spurred him on to new heights. He is now deservedly back in the England squad ahead of Euro 2020.
Shaw is now the most creative full-back in the Premier League and it’s hard to recall a winger who has got the better of him this season.
Solskjaer deserves credit for his management of Shaw, whose confidence was decimated by Jose Mourinho.
United are finally seeing the huge potential Shaw showed when he broke through at Southampton as a teenager. His improvement has been incredible.
Scott McTominay
It’s easy to forget McTominay wasn’t in United’s first choice midfield during Project Restart.
Nemanja Matic, Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes were Solskjaer’s preferred trio then, but McTominay has muscled his way back into the side this season.
The main area in which he’s improved is his goalscoring. He has seven strikes this season and is a threat arriving late into the box as well as at set pieces.
That also gives Solskjaer options in the summer. He can recruit a pure holding midfielder, and perhaps grant McTominay more licence to storm forward.
Or, McTominay can anchor midfield if a more creative deep-lying player comes in.
McTominay will be at Euro 2020 with Scotland and a strong tournament there could see his star rise even further.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Wan-Bissaka has also improved going forward this season.
He looks more assured in possession. In terms of assists and chances created from open play, he’s not a million miles behind Shaw.
We all know Wan-Bissaka is capable of stifling the world’s best wingers and there have been masterclasses away from home against Neymar and Raheem Sterling this season.
There’s still more to come from Wan-Bissaka – Shaw shows the level he needs to get to – but there’s no denying he’s made great strides this term.
- Iliman Ndiaye price tag set, but Man Utd will be concerned about World Cup impact
- Michael Carrick’s first Man Utd signing compared to every manager in the post-Ferguson era
- Ralf Rangnick now wants to poach ‘prominent’ Man Utd figure who has spearheaded Ineos’ success
- Why Man Utd’s ‘preference’ could hold up new stadium as Omar Berrada teases Old Trafford replacement update
- Man Utd officially have one of the quickest players in the Premier League right now
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
