Premier League Winter Break Gives Manchester United A Much Needed Mini Pre-Season

It might not be a full winter break, but these next two weeks are the closest the Premier League will get to one.

With no international matches taking place in Europe, most players won’t play again until at least February 4^th.

For some clubs, the winter break will be needed more than others.

The Premier League is well past halfway for everyone but Burnley, and at this natural break in the season, Manchester City look to have the league already won. Pep Guardiola’s side drew with Southampton at the weekend but won their previous twelve Premier League games ahead of that. They don’t need a break, and if anything, it could hurt City’s momentum.

Below them, Liverpool will be glad of the break as it means Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane will miss fewer league games due to the Africa Cup of Nations, and Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel says his team are “mentally and physically tired”. Chelsea also have the Club World Cup to play in February.

But Manchester United could benefit even more from the break. Their new boss Ralf Rangnick, is known for having a very unique style of play, with lots of pressing and unusual formations like 4-2-2-2. He is more of a “project” manager than a firefighter, and yet, he was brought in to replace Ole Gunnar Solskjaer just before one of the most hectic times in the soccer calendar.

United have only lost once in the Premier League since the 4-1 defeat to Watford that led to Solskjaer being shown the door. But while results have not been dire, United’s performances have been rather uninspiring so far.

That shouldn’t be surprising given how little time Rangnick has had to work with the players. Now he has got something of a mini pre-season with them, Rangnick will have a bit more time to get United playing how he wants them to play.

He isn’t the only new manager to benefit from this “mini pre-season”. Aston Villa have backed new manager Steven Gerrard in the transfer market, bringing in several players already this winter.

The biggest of those names, Philippe Coutinho, is on international duty. But in terms of tactics, Gerrard will be able to work on getting the most out of new full-back Lucas Digne. His attacking qualities are among the best in the league, but on Villa’s other flank, Matty Cash is also very attack-minded, so some work might be needed with the rest of the team to make sure that when Digne and Cash play together, the opposition can’t take advantage of the space behind them.  

Whoever Everton hire as their new manager will also benefit from a bit of time with the squad before their first game, as will Watford’s new manager should the club decide to part ways with Claudio Ranieri.

But Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe won’t get quite as much benefit as the league’s other new managers, largely because new striker Chris Wood is on international duty with New Zealand.

Much has been made of Newcastle’s decision to spend the winter break in Saudi Arabia. In truth, if not for Covid-19, half of the Premier League would be spending the next week or so in the Middle East. As it stands though, Arsenal, who are in Dubai, are the only other team who have headed for warmer climes. The Saudi Arabia trip could act as a distraction for Newcastle, but Howe could also use it to motivate his players.

Newcastle’s relegation rivals are perhaps more in need of a winter’s break, with Watford and Everton in need of something to turn their bad runs around and Leeds United needing a chance to rest and recover from injuries so that they can play the style of soccer that Marcelo Bielsa desires.

Bottom of the league Burnley need the break even more than anyone, with Covid-19 hitting the club hard over the past month, their star striker Chris Wood getting pinched by Newcastle in the January transfer window, and their summer signing Maxwel Cornet still at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Sean Dyche has a lot to sort out at Turf Moor before the Premier League starts up again, and he only has until February 6 when Burnley play Watford, the only Premier League tie of that weekend.

The season might be more than halfway through, but how coaches use the 16 or 17 days until their next league match could have a big say in how they perform over the rest of the 2021/22 season.