Has The 2022/23 Season Been A Success Story For Manchester United?

Not many would have predicted a top four finish and already one domestic trophy under Erik Ten Hag’s belt when he first came into the building last summer.

It is easy to forget, given how long this season has been with the World Cup placed in the middle of it, that Ten Hag has only had 11 months in charge of Manchester United, in what was a sorry state of affairs at the time.

After the team’s opening two games, in which they lost 2-1 at home to Brighton, which was followed up by a 4-0 away defeat down at Brentford – two games in which Manchester United would have had expected three points in.

But since those two matches, where the Red Devils were shambolic, Casemiro and Antony arrived, giving Manchester United much needed quality in key areas. They bounced back with a hugely important victory over Liverpool at Old Trafford, which ignited the crowd back on the team’s side and gave them a new lease of life.

Since that home win against their arch-rivals, Manchester United have gone on to win 23 games at Old Trafford this season, drawing four and losing once to Real Sociedad in a rather contentious manner.

Ten Hag has turned Old Trafford back into the fortress it once was this season, with their home form considerably outperforming their away performances. To put it in plain terms: Manchester United have failed to beat any of the top nine Premier
PINC
League teams on the road this season.

This is clearly an area of much needed improvement, which Ten Hag knows, going into next season, but it does not undo the great work done by the manager and his staff in returning the pride and atmosphere inside the Old Trafford cauldron during this campaign.

If any Manchester United fan was asked at the start of the season, ‘What would be a successful year for the club?’, most would have merely mentioned a finish inside the top four. That was the goal with a new manager trying to start from scratch and whom inherited a broken squad of players.

But with Ten Hag’s infectious attitude and positivity, he has changed around the fortunes of players such as: Luke Shaw, Marcus Rashford, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Diogo Dalot, Victor Lindelöf, Fred and others who have performed on a consistent basis at big moments of the season.

However, Manchester United have done far more than merely finish in the Champions League-qualifying spots, which in itself has been an achievement. Winning the Carabao Cup against Newcastle United at Wembley has been a high point in the Red Devils’ season, especially given how emphatic Eddie Howe’s team have been this season.

Winning the first trophy and the first opportunity available was a huge achievement for Ten Hag, and takes somewhat of the pressure off going into the next final – which is only around the corner. Manchester United go into another game competing for a domestic trophy in the FA Cup, knowing that if they lose, rivals Manchester City are one game away from matching their 1999 treble.

It is a hugely important game, where emotions can takeover, which is what Manchester United will be hoping to take place. The Red Devils are not close to City in terms of dominating matches nor the quality they possess, but they have shown earlier this season that they can pick them off and hurt them.

Even if United are to lose in the FA Cup final, Manchester United’s season has been an overriding success what with the first trophy under Ten Hag’s belt and the qualification for next season’s Champions League. It sets up a summer that should be fruitful.