MANCHESTER UNITED VS. VILLAREAL: THE POST-OLE ERA

 MANCHESTER UNITED VS. VILLAREAL: THE POST-OLE ERA

-Samarth Purohit

Photo Via: Manchester Evening News

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was sacked as Manchester United manager following an embarassing 4-1 loss to Watford on top of an already poor run of games. Assistant coach and former United player Michael Carrick has taken up the role of manager until a suitable interim may be found. Carrick took charge against Villarreal and showed an interesting change in line up, starting VDB and Martial, while benching regular starters such as Rashford and Fernandes. 

The game got off to a slow start, with Manchester United seeming to struggle against the Spanish side for the majority of the first half. The difference came, as it often does, with 2 players: David de gea and Cristiano Ronaldo. 

David De Gea was unrelenting, and despite the sub-par defence of Manchester United not making any blunders, an unusual occurrence in itself, he had his work cut out for him. He did not disappoint, keeping a clean sheet at ensuring Utd won the game when it seemed unlikely for them to do so based on their slow start.

Cristiano Ronaldo is without a doubt, the greatest player to ever wear the jersey of the Red Devils, and is considered by many to be the greatest player of all time for a reason. He would open up the scoring for Manchester United, and his personality and drive to win no matter the cost seems to be rubbing off on his younger teammates: notably, Jadon Sancho. Sancho had a nightmare start to the season, not being able to score or make any major plays in his first run of games, before becoming a benchwarmer in the last few games of Ole's reign. Sancho would however, start against both Watford and Villarreal and had a part to play in both those games. It was his cross into the box against Watford that led to VDBs goal, and it was him who scored Manchester United's second goal against Villarreal, cementing a 2-0 win for the Red Devils.

Ole was no longer manager, yet the same cycle as the one under ole was seen clear as day: a weak team being carried by it's over achieving players. Carrick may have won this, but it's clear he isn't even the coach Ole was, as shown by his decision to start martial over rashford in such an important match.

Martial, with all due respect, is not as good as Rashford is in his current form. The Frenchman is by all accounts a good player, however he is simply outclassed in his position, as shown when Rashford was subbed on in his place, before Rashford would bring the ball into the box, allowing Sancho to score. Martial will most likely be leaving the club in January, and while he is a commendable talent, Marcus showed by he needs to be a regular starter under new management as well.

Fernandes is a world class midfielder as well, and will have to start consistently under new management. VDB and Pogba will alternate as the second midfielder, with Matic, Fred or Mctominay having to operate as part of a pivot. 

The emergency around the sacking of OGS is odd to me: he had a disastrous run of form even before Watford, and the international break would've been the perfect time to find a new manager, even if it must be an interim. The fact that this wasn't done does leave a sour taste in my mouth. The coming months hold a lot of potential for the Red Devils, and only time will tell how they progress. As of right now, they rest comfortably knowing they qualified for the UCL Ro16, and can fully focus on the Premier league, where results have been lackluster till now.