Seven Days To Go: Seven Things To Look Out For From Manchester United

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There are seven more days between now and the start of the Premier League season. As Manchester United are the ones playing the opening match of the campaign, there is also a week until the Red Devils kick off the 2018-19 season. We are taking a look at seven things we will be paying special attention to from Manchester United.

Will De Gea Need To Work As Much?

Let’s start from goal. David De Gea had to work a lot last season. And really – A LOT. Now, we will be looking at the way Manchester United are going to setup this season. Last campaign was in pure numbers one of the best defensively, with 28 goals conceded, but United actually had a soft underbelly of sorts. It was much easier to get through the middle of the park and shoot at De Gea’s goal. Hopefully that changes and De Gea has a great season, just with less things to do.

Will Lukaku Interchange Positions?

One of the more interesting tactical maneuvers during the World Cup in Russia was Roberto Martinez’s decision to move Romelu Lukaku on the right wing against Brazil. That payed off, as the Belgians managed to get past Selecao. Will Jose Mourinho try something similar? Lukaku is expected to remain the focal point, but with a certain Chilean in the team, there is a possibility of the boss throwing in a surprise for the opposition teams here and there.

A Fresh Alexis Sanchez

And about the Chilean… Alexis Sanchez did not play during summer for Chile as his national team missed out on the World Cup so finally, after five years of having no breaks, he did get one this time round. Sanchez will be fresh and he already showed signs of freshness during the US tour. Hopefully that translates properly across the season.

Andreas Pereira As A Deep Lying Playmaker

We have mentioned this before as an interesting thing to look at. Jose Mourinho started using Andreas Pereira not only as a central midfielder during pre-season, but also as a deep-lying playmaker from a more defensive position. The Brazilian looked well in such role and with Nemanja Matic’s injury, the boss might be tempted to give Pereira the chance against Leicester.

Fred’s Influence

Fred signed for Manchester United from Shakhtar Donetsk and all the pundits will be looking at how we will fare in England after a jump straight from Ukrainian football. Many of the journalists have pointed out he could be important player to have around Paul Pogba on the pitch and it will be interesting to see him at Old Trafford. Against Real Madrid he did make some good moves and we will definitely keep an eye on him.

Jose Mourinho’s Moves

What will Jose Mourinho do this season? Will the ‘third season collapse’ occur? Or is that just the media searching for interesting pieces to write? Will his negativity actually bring negative results and what will he get from his players, especially younger ones? Plenty of questions, but that is what usually happens with Mourinho anyway.

Well… Paul Pogba

Of course, the main man. The world champion. This season must (and should) be *the* season for Paul Pogba. Everyone will be watching him and we are certainly hoping he will deliver, like he did in Russia. That will be a good starting point for Manchester United’s successes.