Can Manchester United Be Dominant Once Again?

Can Manchester United Be Dominant Once Again?

Alex Ferguson. The Class of 92. The Treble winning season. The sheer dominance. Those glory days for the Red Devils now linger as a distant memory. The tides have turned as they often do in sport, no one can remain on top of the mountain forever. But for a world-beater club like United, it seems dominance is never too far away. How? When, and if ever, remains the dying question for all United fans.

Fergie Time, No more

Now as we all know Manchester United in the 1990’s and 2000’s were the most dominant team in England. Since the Premier League’s inception in 1992, United have won a staggering 13 titles, during the leagues 18 year tenure thus far.

Nowadays Manchester United have not been having the same luck on the pitch as they once were. It seems to have all come down to when the greatest manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, left the club back in 2013.

In the years since Sir Alex has left United, the club has won just 5 trophies (zero of these being Premier league titles.) No comparisons can be seen to be made to the 38 trophies Sir Alex won during 26 years in charge. Since Sir Alex departed the club, United have been considerably inconsistent in their managerial policy, currently onto their fourth manager in five seasons. 1999 treble winning hero, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, currently takes the helm for the Red Devils.

Ole’s At The Wheel 

Since Solskjaer’s permanent appointment back in March 2019 he has embarked on a rebuilding phase for the club. This has included selling players such as Romelu Lukaku, Ashley Young and Matteo Darmian. Solskjaer has brought in an abundance of young talent, in the way of Aaron Wan-Bissaka from Crystal Palace, Daniel James from Swansea City, Bruno Fernandes from Sporting Lisbon and Harry Maguire from Leicester City. This of-course not coming cheap. The infamous Man United tax making a good deal near impossible to come by for the Norwegian.

Although these players are not going to win United the league, it can be seen as the starting point to rebuilding a United of the past. The Glazer’s have given Ole the backing from the board, time will tell if their gamble pays off. Going against their recent gun-slinging approach to managers must be finally welcomed by the fans, a period of stability and growth has to come to fruition after all.

The team also have some aspiring young talent that could no doubt, grow into club legends. The likes of Brandon Williams and Mason Greenwood will have been met with sighs of release from the United faithful. Already this season, Greenwood boasts five Premier League goals in 22 appearances, as well as another five goals in just seven Europa League performances. Williams has also shown his place as a solid defender for the first team squad, making twelve appearances for United. An impressive feat considering the English left-back is only 19 years old.

With the backing of the board Ole can be given the breathing space to create a regime he sees fit. The Glazers have seen clearly that an injection of stability is needed to turn the ship away from further disaster. Solskjaer must now implement his strategy and get rid of any dead wood that currently plagues United’s dressing room. If the Norwegian can attract young exciting talent who are willing to play his way and buy into the Solskjaer system, time will surely repair the damage of the past seasons.

As it stands Solskjaer has the possibly the biggest job in football. United, after all remain a business, in a ruthless industry which demands results almost instantaneously. The question remains as to whether Solskjaer will be give the time and patience to succeed, as Fergie was notably given during his opening tenure at Old Trafford.

In the next few seasons will we witness another changing of the guard, or will Manchester remain blue for the time being?

We hope you enjoyed the article ‘Can Manchester United Be Dominant Once Again?’ Do you think Ole Gunnar Solskjaer can succeed at Manchester United? Let us know!

If you liked this article why not check out:

• The Steve Bartman Game
• The Last Dance vs The Test: How Leadership In Modern Sport Has Changed
• The Best NBA Players of All Time
• The Best Sporting Documentaries of All Time