3 Things Manchester United need to do in order to compete with the European elites next season

The Red Devils were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League after losing 3-0 to Barcelona at the Camp Nou in the quarter-final second leg. A brace from Lionel Messi in the first half and a screamer from outside the box by Philip Coutinho in the second half sunk Manchester United’s ship at the Camp Nou.

The result and the performance by Manchester United showed the world how far behind they still are from competing against the European powerhouses. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side were dominated in every department on the pitch. The Blaugrana moved the Manchester United players around the whole pitch and made them chase the ball for most of the game.

The gulf between the two sides looked massive and the Norwegian manager will have a huge task on his hands of rebuilding the squad in the summer and take Manchester United to where they belong. Here are 3 things Manchester United need to do if they want to compete against the European elites next season.

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#1 Need to bring in a Technical Director of Football

Manchester United desperately need a director of football and Mike Phelan could be the answer

Manchester United lack a proper structure at the top and this has been one of the major reasons they have been struggling since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill back in 2013.

Ed Woodward, who is the Vice-Executive at the club has been looking after the recruitment process ever since but his record has not been great. The Red Devils have changed 3 managers since he took over and most of the players he recruited have failed miserably at the club.

Ed Woodward is a great businessman but needs someone with great footballing knowledge besides him to look onto the footballing side while he works on the commercial side of the club.

They require a person who can help Ole Gunnar Solskjaer recruit players who will suit the way he wants his side to play and oversee a long-term plan at Manchester United. All the top clubs in Europe have a proper structure at the top and if Manchester United need to reach their level, they need a revamp at the top before the start of next season.

#2 Invest in young, hungry talent instead of signing marquee players

Ángel di María failed miserably at Manchester United

The Red Devils have spent north of £650 million since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson and brought the likes of Ángel di María, Falcao, Memphis, Alexis Sanchez, and Bastian Schweinsteiger to Old Trafford. All these players were world class players at their previous clubs but failed miserably at Manchester United as they either struggled to adapt to the Premier League or didn’t compliment the way United played.

Their recruitment in recent transfer windows have been shocking and they cannot afford to spend another two hundred million on flops this time around. They will have to change their recruitment policy this time around and instead of splashing huge amounts on marquee signings, which they have done in recent transfer windows, must invest in young, hungry players.

They can follow AFC Ajax as an example, who have transformed into one of the most aggressive football-playing sides in Europe just by recruiting young players that fit their playing style and have booked their place in this season’s Champions League Semi-finals. Manchester United will look to strengthen a lot of places on the pitch in the summer transfer window and must go with younger prospects who can transform into one of the best in their respective positions and will fit Solskjaer’s style of play.

#3 Switch to a more possession-based, attacking style of play against the big sides

Manchester United need to change to a more possession-based, attacking style of play against the big teams

Manchester United have had three different managers in the past 6 seasons and all of them had their own footballing philosophies. But all the three managers failed to implement the attacking style of football Manchester United fans were used to under Sir Alex Ferguson.

When Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was appointed as the interim manager back in December, he vowed to bring back the way vintage Manchester United sides used to play. His team does plays expansive football against the lesser opposition but resorts to a counter-attacking approach against the big sides, even at home.

But if Manchester United wants to compete against the best in Europe, they need to adapt to a more possession-based, attacking style of football instead of counter-attacking their opposition.

Barcelona made the Manchester United players chase them for most of the game just to get a sniff of the ball and showed why his counter-attacking approach might not work against Europe’s best sides, who love to dominate possession.

And if he wants to compete with them, he will have to go toe to toe with his opponents. Solskjaer and his players will have a lot of work to do during the pre-season to implement this playing style and learn to dominate possession against the toughest opponents in Europe next season.