Manchester United have endured plenty of lows in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, but they hit rock-bottom after a 3-0 loss to Newcastle at Old Trafford on November 1. That result saw the Red Devils exit the Carabao Cup at the round of 16, capping a miserable defence of the trophy they had won after a final win over the same opponents in February.
It was also their eighth defeat in their first 15 matches across all competitions in 2023-24. The last time United started a season that badly was way back in 1961, when they were still rebuilding the squad after the tragic Munich air crash of ’58.
Erik ten Hag’s side have been leaking goals in domestic and European competition, while also looking alarmingly toothless at the other end of the pitch. United have won four of their last five Premier League games, but only by a solitary goal, and they are already seven points behind leaders Manchester City.
Even another top-four finish looks beyond United right now given their poor level of performance, and they certainly won’t be qualifying for next season’s Champions League by winning it. Only maximum points from their final two group games against Galatasaray and Bayern Munich will prevent them from falling at the first hurdle.
And yet, all is not lost. There is no denying that bad luck with injuries has played a key role in United’s decline. Andre Onana, Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro, Christian Eriksen, Amad Diallo and Tyrell Malacia are all currently on the treatment table, while Rasmus Hojlund, Mason Mount and Aaron Wan-Bissaka have also missed a significant portion of games.
Any team would struggle with such a depleted squad, but the absence of Luke Shaw has been the most significant for United. The 28-year-old has been out of action since sustaining a muscle issue in United’s 2-0 loss at Tottenham on August 17, and wasn’t expected back until December.
However, Shaw made a surprise early return to training this week, and is being tipped to start against Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday. United’s first-choice left-back has rarely received the credit he deserves at Old Trafford, but he’s the most important player in Ten Hag’s ranks – and his reintegration might just spark a rapid turnaround in fortunes.
Partnership rekindled
Marcus Rashford won the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year award for the 2022-23, finishing top of the voting among United fans ahead of Bruno Fernandes and Martinez. He also picked up the club’s Player’s Player of the Year award as he was deservedly recognised for his most prolific season yet in the famous red shirt.
But he owed a great debt of gratitude to Shaw for giving him the platform to reach those heights. The defender’s overlapping runs drew opposition players out of position so that Rashford could cut inside or dart into the penalty area and provide the finish or decisive final pass for United.
Without Shaw, he has been unable to make the same in-roads. Rashford has only scored once in 14 appearances since the defender’s injury against Spurs, and has been very lucky to retain his place in Ten Hag’s line-up.
Diogo Dalot, Victor Lindelof and Sergio Reguilon have all filled in for Shaw, but none of them have had the same natural rapport with Rashford going forward. Consequently, United have carried next to no threat down the left flank, which was where the majority of their goals came from last season.
Rashford has been guilty of overrunning the ball in an attempt to create openings and shooting from ridiculous positions out of frustration. His confidence is completely shot and he’s in desperate need of a boost, which Shaw can provide. The England duo built up one of the most effective partnerships in English football in Ten Hag’s debut season in Manchester, and there’s no reason why they can’t now rekindle it.
Hungry Hojlund
United forked out £72 million ($90m) to bring Hojlund to Old Trafford from Atalanta in the summer window, which was a huge investment considering his lack of experience. And so far, the gamble hasn’t paid off. Hojlund has gone nine Premier League games without a goal, and appears to be struggling with the pace of the English football.
The Danish striker’s work-rate can’t be faulted, but there are a lot of raw edges in his game that still need to be ironed out. Going all out for Harry Kane would have made more sense, and there must be a part of Ten Hag that regrets his decision after watching the former Tottenham man break every scoring record in the book in his first few months at Bayern Munich.
That’s not to say that Hojlund is a lost cause, though. In actual fact, it’s quite conceivable that the 20-year-old could go on to reach a similar level to Kane in the future. Hojlund has hit five goals in four Champions League appearances for United to date, and his link-up play has been generally very impressive. The Denmark international is also intelligent with his movement off the ball, but many of his runs have been ignored or overlooked.
Former United defender Rio Ferdinand recently compared Hojlund’s situation to the one Ruud van Nistelrooy found himself in after Cristiano Ronaldo’s arrival at the club back in 2003. “Ruud van Nistelrooy more or less had Cristiano Ronaldo in tears almost one day, saying, ‘How can I make my runs when you don’t cross the ball?’ That’s how Hojlund must feel right now with the wide players he’s playing with,” Ferdinand said on his YouTube channel FIVE.
The Red Devils have quite simply not been playing to Hojlund’s strengths. He hasn’t played with Shaw yet, and must be licking his lips at the prospect of some quality service from out wide. Shaw put more crosses into the box than any other United player last term, and was also top for passes into the final third.
He would have probably led the way for assists too, if he’d had a proper centre-forward following in, which he admitted he was “desperate” for before the new season got underway. He will finally get his wish in the coming weeks, and it will be no surprise if Hojlund’s output suddenly increases dramatically.
Defensive balance
Shaw is widely considered to be one of the best left-backs in the business, not least because of his quality on the ball and strength in one-on-one duels. He has the most to offer United in that position, but Ten Hag has also experimented with him as a centre-half – with impressive results.
Eleven of Shaw’s starts for United last season came in the heart of the defence as the Dutch manager favoured the left-footer over Harry Maguire. The England international put his body on the line and read the game brilliantly to cut out attacks in those matches, but it was his passing that stood out most.
Ten Hag has always stressed the importance of his centre-backs playing through the lines to ensure that United build attacks from both sides of the pitch. Shaw delivered those incisive balls time and time again, while also pushing forward himself on the counter.
With Martinez not expected to return until the new year, Shaw might just be the best option to partner Maguire, who has won his place back as the right-sided centre-back in recent weeks. He offers far more than Lindelof and surprise summer signing Jonny Evans, with both men lacking the technical ability to step into midfield and mobility to keep close track of runners.
Full faith in Ten Hag
When United lose games, the manager comes under the spotlight. Ten Hag learned that quicker than most, after opening his reign with back-to-back defeats against Brighton and Brentford. The Red Devils also suffered heavy losses against the likes of Manchester City, Liverpool and Sevilla in 2022-23, but the campaign was ultimately deemed a success because Ten Hag delivered a trophy and Champions League qualification.
All the players seemed to be behind the Dutchman, and for the first time since Ferguson’s departure in 2013, there was a real sense that United were heading in the right direction. And no one believed that more than Shaw.
“It’s clear to see what he has brought in and how he has changed the way we think, the way we play,” he told Sky Sports at the end of May. “I think he wants to bring a lot of intensity. I think everything he wants the team to do is high intensity, he wants us to be aggressive, on the front foot, pressing as high as possible.
“With the ball he has made us better. We have to be challenging for the title with this team. Our aim at the beginning of next season has to be winning the Premier League and the Champions League. That’s how we’ve got to think from now on.”
Shaw also called for new signings, and Ten Hag was able to bring in Hojlund, Mount, Onana, Reguilon and Sofyan Amrabat in the summer market. United then began the season with a scrappy home win against Wolves and the defeat to Spurs, which saw Shaw suffer his unfortunate fitness setback.
But he would never imagined that the team would fall so far from that point. The Red Devils have completely lost their identity, and many of Ten Hag’s signings, from this year and last, are either underperforming or clearly now past their best.
Dressing room leaks have also re-emerged – the kind that undermined the authority of previous managers such as Ralf Rangnick, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Jose Mourinho. Consequently, it has been suggested that Ten Hag no longer enjoys the full trust of his players.
Right now, it feels like a daunting task for him to turn the situation around. But he should still have a strong ally in Shaw, given the fact he hasn’t been involved for the majority of this turbulent period. His opinion on Ten Hag is unlikely to have changed, and he can play a key role in getting the rest of squad to believe in the manager again.
United might not be able to achieve the lofty goals he previously set, but there is still plenty to play for in the second half of the season.
It’s a huge boost for the whole club that Shaw is available for selection again, and Ten Hag has already confirmed that he is planning to throw him straight back in at the deep end. The United boss told a press conference on Thursday: “Shaw has been training for two weeks with the team. We are quite hopeful that he will return to the squad for Sunday’s game.”
The international break came at the perfect time for Shaw as he was able to build up some rhythm on the training pitch without having to worry about risking a recurrence of his muscle issue in a competitive match setting. But Ten Hag would still be wise to ease the full-back back in gradually.
In the early years of Shaw’s United career, a string of serious injures prevented him from making any meaningful contribution. And it seemed like every time he tried to make a comeback, a new problem would arise that sent him back to square one.
That has changed over the past four or five seasons, with Shaw now a far more robust player who has proven that he can handle the rigours of elite-level football week in, week out. But rushing him back into the starting XI too quickly is still not the most sensible idea given his history.
United’s trip to Everton this weekend is likely to be a tricky one, with Sean Dyche’s side still reeling from a 10-point deduction. The Toffees will be determined to put two fingers up to the Premier League by beating United to move straight back out of the relegation zone.
It will, of course, be tempting to start Shaw. Ten Hag has been given the dreaded vote of confidence by the United board, but another embarrassing loss will put him back on the brink. He must also have one eye on the huge Champions League encounter against Galatasaray on Wednesday. That one really is a must-win for United, and it might be best to save Shaw for that contest in Turkey.
Beyond that, the Red Devils need him to be firing on all cylinders if they are to save their season. And if they do manage it, maybe Shaw will finally get the appreciation he is due.
