Three years ago, Manchester United appointed José Mourinho which prompted the Sports Mirror to suggest that Mourinho might be the solution to United’s problems, given how he led Porto and Inter to Champions League titles. In the three years prior to signing the mercurial manager, the Red Devils finished 7th, 4th, and 5th. United finished 6th in the 2016/17 season, Mourinho’s first, before finishing 2nd last season. After that 2nd place finish, hopes were high at Old Trafford coming into this season.

But 17 matches later, Mourinho was sacked. At that time United had as many wins (7) as losses (7), the last one coming against rivals Liverpool at Anfield. Former United forward Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took over as caretaker manager, and led the Red Devils to 10 wins in their next 12 matches. With an impressive run, hopes were high for a top-four finish and a Champions League berth secured for next season.

Then it all went downhill, with United losing 4 of their last 7 games coming into their away match against already relegated Huddersfield. United still had an outside chance of qualifying for the Champions League, as pointed out by CNN in its recap of the match. A 1-1 draw, however, dashed those hopes. That’s in spite of bwin Premier League noting that Huddersfield had lost 8 straight Premier League matches before the game with United. It was a crushing blow, one that encapsulated the Red Devils’ late-season freefall. This now begs the question: What went wrong for United?

Mourinho wasn’t the solution

Mourinho’s exacting attitude and sharp tongue didn’t go down too well at Old Trafford. His relationships with Paul Pogba, Luke Shaw, and Anthony Martial, among others, were strained, causing friction within the squad. The discontent, naturally, showed in games. Pogba looked nothing like the rising star he was at Juventus, while Shaw and Martial couldn’t quite play to their potential. Solskjaer may have remedied that situation as best he could, but the damage had been done.

Team-wide regression

Pogba showed flashes of brilliance, especially when Solskjaer was named manager, but his performances were largely uninspiring this season. Romelu Lukaku was sensational last year but mostly average this season. Even David de Gea — one of the world’s best goalkeepers — became error-prone during the last couple of months, costing United goals against Arsenal, Everton, Barcelona, Manchester City and Chelsea. Whether it was down to fitness, bruised egos, shattered confidence, or the law of averages, many of the players United should be able to count on just didn’t match expectations this season.

Not good enough

Even Solskjaer admitted that United aren’t talented enough. Pogba, Lukaku, and De Gea are top talent; outside of that trio, however, the talent level drops at least a notch or two. Marcus Rashford, Jesse Lingard, and Anthony Martial are exciting players, but none of those would force themselves into, Liverpool or City’s first XI. Pogba, Lukaku, and De Gea playing to their full potential could have masked that lack of talent. Moreover, signings like Pogba, Shaw, Martial, Juan Mata, and Alexis Sanchez would, in most cases, be considered coups. In United’s case, those signings haven’t exactly worked out as hoped.

United need an entire overhaul, and that challenge falls squarely on Solskjaer’s shoulders. He’ll have to use the summer transfer window as a chance to bring in championship-calibre talent and decide on the fate of the likes of Pogba, Shaw, Lukaku, De Gea and Martial — all of whom are reportedly disillusioned with life in Manchester. More importantly, he’ll have to decide whether they have the right character for the team. Solskjaer used the word “character” when describing his ideal summer signings. But what United need the most, is for Solskjaer to bring back their winning culture, which exiting Old Trafford the same time as Sir Alex Ferguson did. This might necessitate a complete rebuilding project from the ground up, even if it means making up the numbers next season with some of the academy’s talented, young hopefuls.

Tags: Champions League, Jose Mourinho, Manchester United, Old Trafford, Red Devils