Is Manchester United stronger than last season?

After finishing second last season, José Mourinho was hoping to do better this season and that necessarily means he would have to go after the Premier League title. Even though we’re still in September and only 4 games were played in the league so far, the first signs were not very optimistic at all and it would be a big surprise if Manchester United really manages to become the English champions in 2018-19.

The last time Manchester United won the Premier League title was back in 2012-13 season, precisely when Sir Alex Ferguson announced he would retire from football after a 26-year spell in the club, having won a total of 38 trophies (including 13 Premier League titles). Names like David Moyes, Ryan Giggs (caretaker), Louis Van Gaal and José Mourinho followed the Scottish legend, but it’s almost as if they’re failing to live up to the expectations.

This season and with José Mourinho still at the helm, Manchester United has been struggling quite a lot in the Premier League and they’re sitting in 10th place after completing 4 fixtures. The Red Devils won 2 games and lost another 2, including a 3-0 home defeat against their rivals Tottenham Hotspur that really let the fans thinking and whoever had the opportunity to watch Manchester United live streaming that day, that there are not many reasons to think Mourinho and his pupils can dream big this season.

One of the many controversies around Manchester United this season goes around the transfer policy the club has decided to adopt this summer. In terms of relevant exits, Blind left to his former club Ajax while Michael Carrick announced his retirement and joined the team’s staff. While it’s arguable whether any of these departures really impacted the team in a negative way, the truth is that those who came in also didn’t prove to be what United needed in order to improve their performance levels and ultimately their results.

The Red Devils had their top signing in Fred from Shakhtar Donetsk, but also brought Dalot from FC Porto and Lee Grant from Stoke City. Only Fred is expected to win a regular spot in United’s starting eleven this season, since Dalot is more of a investment for the future, and Lee Grant will always have De Gea ahead of him in the goal.

After roughly a full month of competition, it doesn’t look like Manchester United is stronger than last season, quite the opposite in fact. Some of the team key players are still looking to find their best form (which is normal given the early stage of the season) and there’s no way to hide that with so few quality options when Mourinho turns himself to the bench. As if United’s form wasn’t problematic enough, some of their rivals like Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham have all had a good start of the season and are already inside the top 5 positions in the Premier League. Liverpool and Man City in particular are seen by many experts as the main favorites to win the title this season and to be honest, it’s going to be hard for anyone else in the league to keep up with them.