Manchester United: Grading The Squad For 2017/18

Sergio Romero

Romero is a top quality keeper

Sergio Romero is quite simply the best 2nd choice goalkeeper in the world at the moment. The Argentina no.1 hasn't been called up much this season. He conceded just 4 goals in 10 appearances and has been impressive whenever called upon.

Ashley Young

Well done, Young boy. Good job making it to the World Cup squad for England. Written off and often ridiculed for all the theatrics he puts on display, Ashley Young has been silencing his critics over the past couple of seasons.

After shifting to left-back, he has made the position his own. He scored 2 beauties against Watford and provided 5 assists across all competitions. Young has been a good attacking outlets and his crosses are one of United's main weapons going forward.

Chris Smalling

Smalling up against Hazard

Smalling cannot pass the ball forward. He is also prone to errors. His giving away of the ball in the middle of the park which led to that Newcastle defeat still leaves me frustrated.

But in a season where all his partners were succumbing to injuries, Smalling offered stability. He was also dedicated to the cause and on several occasions came up with last-ditch tackles to save the day.

I mean, somebody teaches this man to pass the ball and Eric Bailly might just have a great partner in the centre.

About the author

Shambhu is a European and international football journalist at Sportskeeda who focuses on previews, listicles and news articles. An ardent Manchester United supporter since before his teenage years, he started following the Red Devils by age 10 watching MUTV on television. Shambhu is also a highly-revered rapper and a playback singer on Spotify, having a whopping 1 million monthly listeners.

For his articles, Shambhu believes in triple-checking every piece of information, relying on trusted websites like Transfermarkt and Opta, and staying away from speculative publications. He believes that his law degree helped him to be more articulate and meticulous with his content and one of his core strengths is seamlessly involving emotion in his write-ups owing to the love for the sport. For Sportskeeda, has done exclusive interviews with Spanish legends Gaizka Mendieta and Fernando Morientes so far, and his articles boast of a huge readership of close to 50 million.

Shambhu's favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and the Argentine attaining glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment. He believes only Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland could replicate Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's rivalry in the years to come. His favorite manager is Sir Alex Ferguson due to the Scot's unmatched longevity at the top.

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Edited by Shruti Sadbhav