Manchester United: Things to look for in the preseason tour

Football never stops. Just a couple days after World Cup Final, the process is starting over again as players and teams prepare for a new season.

Man United has landed in the United States, where they will play five of their six preseason matches. After delivering a treble in his first season, Jose Mourinho’s sophomore year at Old Trafford ran into a roadblock as United finished the season empty-handed. A second-place finish in the Premier League and FA Cup doesn’t meet the expectation, and Mourinho knows this preseason is the start of a make-or-break year if he wants to overcome his third-season syndrome.

Preseason is more about building match fitness and a team’s style of play than getting the result. However, as United prepares for the most crucial season since the Ferguson era, there are several things to look for during the Red Devils’ journey in the U.S.

Players at the crossroad

United doesn’t come to the U.S. with a full roster because Mourinho has handed half of the team their post-World Cup vacation. Some players will appreciate this decision because they desperately need to impress the manager to save their United’s career.

Anthony Martial is the biggest star name on the list of players who are at the crossroad. The winger had a promising start to his United career, but his progress has stalled since Mourinho’s arrival.

Martial brings pace, energy, and improvisation, but his lack of tactical flexibility and defensive contribution has him fallen behind Marcus Rashford on the pecking order. The arrival of Alexis Sanchez in January has Martial further down with only five appearances since Sanchez’s arrival.

As Sanchez, Rashford and Romelu Lukaku won’t play in the tour for different reasons, Martial will lead Red Devils’ front line in their time in the U.S. His quality is too good to be benched, and a good preseason tour can kick-start a revival of his United’s career.

Both Luke Shaw and Matteo Darmian have been outcast for a while, logging a combined of 1,233 minutes in the Premier League last season. Despite United’s need for a quality full-back, it is likely that at least one of them will be shown the exit by the end of the transfer window. Shaw and Darmian will be given plenty of playing time considering Ashley Young and Diogo Dalot’s omission from the squad, which will be their final opportunity to plead a case for themselves to stay.

Andreas Pereira isn’t too keen to spend another season on loan, but Fred’s arrival and Mourinho’s possible switch to his favorite “trivote” make life more difficult for him to break into the first team. The switch also doesn’t benefit Juan Mata, who has been struggling to find a permanent position to be a consistent contributor.

Both of them are players who need to be built around, which goes against Mourinho’s philosophy. Pereira and Mata have entered the stage of their career that they need to be a starter on a weekly basis. A good performance in the tour is greatly needed if they want to extend their Old Trafford stay.