Manchester United appear reinvigorated on and off the pitch as they continue their pre-season preparations in the US, writes Sky Sports News senior reporter Melissa Reddy; club are awaiting scan results on injuries to Leny Yoro and Rasmus Hojlund
Wednesday 31 July 2024 07:46, UK
Bar the opening 33 minutes at the extravagant SoFi Stadium, in which Rasmus Hojlund and Leny Yoro were both heading straight down the tunnel after sustaining injuries, Manchester United's pre-season has been painted by positive vibes.
A Carrington upgrade, early signings with a dose of doing one over Real Madrid in the market, certainty around Erik ten Hag's future, the new football structure in situ and providing support on the US tour, the return of Ruud van Nistelrooy as a coach…
It was looking good, great, gorgeous. The double injury blow has clouded the shine, with scans due to provide clarity on the extent of the damage suffered by Hojlund and Yoro soon.
United had to wait a minimum of 24 hours for swelling to go down before they could do any assessments.
Whatever results are returned, there is a determination not to be overrun by the negative; not to be the crisis club. United feel they have done extensive work this year to get their operational structure in place ahead of the summer window, to make sure there is a fresh approach to performance gains across the board, and to hit immediate and longer-term aims - the crux amongst the latter is delivering a world-class stadium.
Ten Hag spoke about the new processes feeling good and he has come across light-hearted and rejuvenated on tour. After his talks with the new leadership team in Ibiza, where he stressed that respect, open communication and professional courtesy needs to be adhered to, the manager and the football operations structure have dovetailed in synchronicity.
Dan Ashworth, Sir Dave Brailsford and Jason Wilcox have spent time at training sessions so everyone can feel more supported and to build a strong sense of togetherness. The relationship between Ten Hag and the trio, as well as chief executive Omar Berrada, has been developing to great effect in LA.
A 'one club, one vision' policy is what everyone is now subscribing to.
Ten Hag may have been understandably reluctant to let go of his former assistant Mitchell van der Gaag, but appreciated that a different dynamic was required in the coaching staff.
Van Nistelrooy's introduction has been an instant success with the squad, several of whom flagged his aura and fresh perspective during interviews with Sky Sports News.
His attacking sessions have been intense, but are intended to get the players automatically reacting to on-pitch situations with repeated patterns being drilled. There has been a focus on passing through a compact opposition, successfully countering with minimal touches and adding variety to methods of attack.
Rene Hake has taken on most of Van der Gaag's responsibilities, and the feedback has been that he is easier to work with and has a more open manner.
Goalkeeping coach Jelle ten Rouwelaar's sessions, like Van Nistelrooy's, are designed to improve cognitive function and get the players into the habit of making decisions with certainty and automatically.
Away from the backroom staff, recruitment has also felt different; more front foot and less passive. One example given was with Yoro. In the recent past, United would have felt it unwise to challenge Real for such a prospect.
They have, in the large, stayed away from deals that would be too difficult to negotiate, like prising Harry Kane from Tottenham - even if it could have prompted an almighty transformation.
While there are moving parts to the business United still want to do, they have not idly been on standby. The bulk of a series of deals have been lined up should United need to pull the trigger - like with Bayern Munich's Noussair Mazraoui, which is also a departure from the norm. They are not getting stuck in sub-optimal situations because they can't shift players.
On that note, finally United have switched on to selling well. Sizeable buy-backs, being less rigid on valuations if wins can be secured differently in the agreement, and operating off smarts rather than sentiment has greased the process.
United are adding new profiles to the squad to spark a new dynamic: Mazraoui, for example, is the antithesis of Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who loves a one-v-one and is too defensively minded to enact Ten Hag's football.
There are still a few puzzles to solve in the squad build, but there's a confidence at United that they will work in a smarter and more sustainable way.
The players have been a mix of determined and relaxed on tour. Most have been parroting the message that they want the performance in the FA Cup final victory to be the norm.
Attitudes in training have been praised and time off has been spent golfing, shopping on Rodeo Drive or soaking in rays at the shore.
Kobbie Mainoo, still on holiday, couldn't even keep away. He was spotted playing football with kids on Venice Beach.
The squad will hope to benefit from a change in medical and conditioning personnel and practices. Eyes will roll and memes will flow given the two injuries in the first half against Arsenal, but the processes haven't been implemented for long and should be judged over time.
There has been some sniping at individuals in the set-up, but as one source said: "Anyone who thinks injuries are the fault of one physio or one doctor doesn't understand anything about the mechanics of the body, load and even not getting into technical details, how much time and effort the conditioning staff put into helping players be in the best possible shape. They spent more time doing that than with their families."
Now they are crossing fingers for the best possible outcome with those scan results.
Manchester United will start their 2024/25 Premier League season with a home fixture against Fulham, live on Sky Sports, and face Liverpool in the opening month of the season.
The opening game of the new campaign will be played on Friday August 16, with kick-off at 8pm.
United then travel to Brighton before their first big derby of the season at home to Liverpool on Sunday September 1.
The reverse fixture will be played at the start of 2025 with a trip to Anfield on January 4.
Fans will have to wait until December for the first Manchester derby of the season, away at Manchester City on December 14. The reverse fixture at Old Trafford will be played on April 5.
Boxing Day will see Man Utd travel to Wolves, and they will finish the 2024/25 campaign at home to Aston Villa on May 25.
