Man United’s pre-season: three huge problems exposed, INEOS have two weeks to fix them

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Manchester United’s pre-season campaign is complete. A cluster of decent performances against Rosenburg, Atletico Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Leeds United were bookended by two abject displays against Wrexham and Milan.

Pre-season is not just about fitness, despite what MUTV’s commentary team kept saying as we watched pictures of Ruben Amorim’s team demolishing United. It is also about establishing understanding, team bonding, building momentum and helping the manager to figure out what his best starting XI will be for the start of the season proper, as well as identifying what issues need to be addressed in order to be successful when the Premier League campaign begins.

If there is any upside to yesterday’s mauling in Wroclaw, it is surely the latter. The 4-2 defeat shone a bright spotlight on three weak links in United’s chain that Carrick and INEOS have less than one week to repair.

1. United need another striker

Even if Ben Sesko had been fit and firing in pre-season, United cannot afford to rely on just one striker in a Champions League season. Bryan Mbeumo has done quite well up top this summer, but his passing is poor and he is never going to be able to play with his back to goal, nor be a threat from set pieces.

Matheus Cunha was ineffective in the role against the Rossoneri and, despite a decent tour, Josh Zirkzee is not really an out-and-out nine, nor does he seem to be particularly favoured by Carrick.

The buzz around youngster Chido Obi last year has fizzled out and he has gone from breakthrough hopeful to probable loanee.

Whether it is a young hopeful, an experienced veteran or a halfway decent backup, a second striker is an absolute must in the final fortnight of the transfer market. What other Champions League club will be going into the season with only one striker in the entire squad?

2. Big investment needed in defence

Numbers are not the problem at the back; it is quality, fragility and understanding. Right-back will not be a priority this summer. United have Diogo Dalot and Nous Mazraoui, both steady enough without being fan favourites. In an ideal world an upgrade would be acquired, but it will have to wait.

The centre-back area is loaded with doubt, though. Will Matthijs de Ligt fully recover from back surgery? Legendary United central defender Gary Pallister is concerned, having himself seen his career cut short due to a similar issue. Harry Maguire continues to divide opinion. Many see him as a heroic, strong leader who is a monster at the back and a threat going forward. Others are concerned by his lack of pace and positional inconsistency and have the impression that, even when Maguire himself is shining individually, other defenders seem to play worse around him.

Lisandro Martinez is also an enigma. Undoubtedly United’s best ball-playing centre-back, his height, pace and injury record are all still question marks. Milan’s fourth goal yesterday highlighted a frightening lack of pace, even though it must be said that it was his first match back after the World Cup.

Ayden Heaven and Leny Yoro are amazing prospects, but both are still error-prone. In any event, even though they have great chemistry as a pairing, Carrick is unlikely to play them ahead of the more senior players.

The solution seems obvious: INEOS need to replace one of the three senior centre-backs with a steadier, safer pair of hands.

At left-back, Luke Shaw needs a deputy. Dalot and Mazraoui can both cover there, but it is not their strength. Harry Amass played well this summer but does not quite look ready and will probably go out on loan. Carrick has repurposed Patrick Dorgu as a winger. Fans are baying for INEOS to get Lewis Hall from Newcastle United. He would be the ideal, but a decent backup is the minimum requirement.

3. The gap between academy and first team is huge

Another purpose of pre-season is to give academy stars the chance to prove they are ready for the first team. In that sense, this summer has been a disappointment. Shea Lacey has done quite well, but he was already on the fringes of the first-team squad last season. No young striker has come through. The Fletcher twins have been given ample opportunity to prove their worth in midfield, but they are a long way from being ready. Dan Armer shows promise as a left-footed Maguire clone, but he, too, is far from first-team level.

We have seen the likes of Tynan Thompson come in and get minutes; there is hope further down the line with the likes of JJ Gabriel and Jim Thwaites, but right now, it is hard to spot the next Marcus Rashford, Kobbie Mainoo, Mason Greenwood or Danny Welbeck, let alone the next class of ’92.

Nobody can fault INEOS for a lack of investment in young talent, but something needs to work better in bringing them on. New coaches and management throughout the academy seem to be the obvious area for improvement.

Final thoughts

There have been some huge positives this summer. The performances of new signing Andrey Santos, the goalscoring of Mbeumo, the chemistry of Yoro and Heaven as a partnership, Patrick Dorgu’s reinvention as a winger and Mason Mount’s reinvention as a central midfielder all stand out. However, if United are to mount a serious challenge in any competition this coming season, they simply must:

The latter will take time to achieve. The others are urgent.