Despite the disaster which was last season, Manchester United are beginning to turn things around with Ruben Amorim getting the most of the players he has already.
It would have been easy to look at the Manchester United squad last season and suggest a complete clear out.
Finishing 15th is far from good enough, and it simply cannot happen again. But, Ruben Amorim has promised United improvements, which there are clearly signs of.
United were beaten by Arsenal on match day one of the Premier League season, however, on the other side of this fixture, the Red Devils have been heavily praised.
Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo were the most impressive, making an instant and extreme impact on the attacking quality at Old Trafford.
In addition, Bruno Fernandes was also a significant performer, as he continued his incredible creativity for United despite playing in a deeper role.
Against Arsenal, there was also another top performer for Amorim, and Wes Brown saw it coming.
Matthijs de Ligt playing for Manchester United
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images
Wes Brown expects Matthijs de Ligt to become a star for Manchester United this season
While the attacking play got the plaudits for Manchester United’s performance in defeat against Arsenal, it cannot be forgotten that the defence was also excellent and denied Arsenal any real chances.
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In fact, without Arsenal’s controversial goal which Mark Clattenburg exclusively told United in Focus, should not have stood, the Gunners had nothing to threaten United.
Matthijs de Ligt was a big part of United’s success as he dominated Viktor Gyokeres, and following this performance, The Athletic’s Carl Anka wrote heavy praise on the Dutchman, revealing that MUTV’s Wes Brown had also spoken positively about the defender.
“He’s more like me than I would have thought,” added Brown.
“I like him. First of all: his physique. He’s strong. He doesn’t give up. He’s a good last-ditch defender with sliding tackles and things like that. He wants to win.
“I think De Ligt will be a priority (for Amorim)”, Brown finally predicted, which certainly appears to be the case this season so far.
Phil Jones also heaped praise on Matthijs de Ligt
Brown’s praise for De Ligt is something that many fans will start to be agreeing with.
However, one club figure who already agrees is Phil Jones, who told The Athletic in June of his excitement over De Ligt.
“He’s played for some massive clubs and with some unbelievable players, his experience back there is obviously vital.”
Paul Scholes was concerned over De Ligt’s arrival when he first joined, however, a full campaign of performances like he put in against Arsenal should answer any doubts.
De Ligt appears to be Amorim’s first choice centre-centre-back in this system, so now the ball is with the defender and he needs to take advantage of it.