Why Manchester United must strengthen their squad in January

Michael Carrick, Danny Welbeck and Adnan Januzaj

When Sir Alex Ferguson lifted the title last year, little did he think that his last championship winning side would falter within a year. Nor did many of us. This season has certainly turned out to be a roller-coaster journey for the reigning champions.

After Manchester United started their Premier League campaign with a stunning win at Swansea, things haven’t gone to plan since and Sir Alex’s handpicked successor as well as compatriot isn’t being able to cope up with the pressure at The Old Trafford. With players getting injured, few out of form and some bad referring decisions according to their present Manager, nothing seems to be going their way for the Red Devils.

At the present moment they really seem to be the club at crisis. It is highly improbable that United will retain their league title and a top four berth only seems to be the realistic hope for them. They might compete for higher prospects in Europe but their domestic season isn’t going right. However they might very well do themselves a favour if they awaken their champions’ spirit and play good football towards the end half of the season.

So what’s wrong in the red half of Manchester?

They have got a world-class goalkeeper in the making, in the form of David de Gea. The 23 year old Spanish stopper is certainly the most consistent performer of the team until now although he might not make it to World Cup this summer as this highly talented stopper is rated no better than number five for his country.

But despite De Gea’s effort, United have still conceded 27 goals after 22 games this season which is higher than the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and even Everton. The lack of a permanent Centre-Back partnership could be one of the main reasons for this cause.

Moyes have rotated the entire back 4 on a few times which certainly didn’t have a positive impact on the players. Rio is getting old and slow. Vidic is still trying to sort out his future at United. Evans has turned up well but he still needs some consistent performances on a regular basis to match the quality of someone like Jaap Stam or Nemanja Vidic of yesteryears who could put their authority on the game.

Rafael has matured into a good right back over the period of years but the same cannot be said for his brother Fabio who seems to be on the lower pecking order at The Old Trafford. Evra too is getting old, but he still has something left in his tank to grab the headlines with those occasional flashes of brilliance.

Jones can play the role of a CB as he has played there in a number of occasions and he certainly has the physical and technical attributes to do the job. But it is up to Moyes to find out which role suits him more. Their entire back 4 problem should be sorted out by Moyes and co. as soon as possible or else the opposition teams might just start to ship in goals with ease.

The entire United midfield is in shambles. The manager needs to find some quick solutions and has plenty to consider when trying to fix United’s midfield. A lack of quality in the central midfield is very evident and Moyes needs to act sooner rather than later.

He has some big decisions to make in the ongoing January transfer window. Even though marquee signings might be difficult to come, but he can still try to get the most out of his current crop of midfielders. He needs someone who must be technically adept and effective from box to box.

Phil Jones and Michael Carrick

Michael Carrick is a very good player but he needs someone better than Tom Cleverly to partner him in the central midfield area. Fellaini hasn’t been impressive so far this season with people raising concerns about Moyes’ last minute panic buy of the former Everton star.

Shinji Kagawa, the Japanese playmaker is a very talented player, but just 18 months after his signing for the club, has been asked to watch from the sidelines after being restricted to just seven league starts this season. He needs a longer run in the team to show his true worth as a player.

However, one positive of the season for David Moyes in his first season in charge of Manchester United has been the rise of Belgian youngster Adnan Januzaj. Back in June, he was showcasing his dribbling abilities in the reserves and earned a name for himself in the United reserve team.

Six months later the young Belgian has not only been a first team regular at Old Trafford but also has turned out to be the creative asset of his team with his quick feet and ambitious play. United however cannot solely depend on the 18 year old to save their season but he can himself do no harm if he goes on to blossom in the presence of senior players.

On the contrary, players like Ashley Young and Nani has performed way below average this season. They need to gear up if they want to play regular football the coming season. The likes of Valencia and Wilfried Zaha needs to be given some time in the playing field although I don’t believe that Moyes has much faith in the latter. The Red Devils have scored only 36 goals in the league this season and with nagging injuries to both their main strikers, Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney, there is problem up front too.

Moyes has started Welbeck on a number of occasions and with 8 goals to his name has performed reasonably well but he might find it too heavy to handle the pressure alone.

The stakes are stacked as high as a snowy peak and Moyes knew that when he took the job from Ferguson. He knew that it was a great opportunity to take over the champions of England but it was also loaded with risks. And now when the when everyone at Old Trafford is trying to save their season, the risks involved with the job has become clear.

If Moyes fails at Manchester united, he will be tagged as the guy who couldn’t handle the reigns at Old Trafford and his 11 years of achievement at Everton will be undermined. That’s a brutal reality and the unforgiving nature of the fans.

There are many who hope he does fail and many others are relishing his troubles. Manchester United dominated English football for so long that a sudden fall from grace was always going to be greeted with hilarity among the rival fans. Moyes knows best that he needs to turn things around and hopefully United can pull themselves together under “the Chosen one ‘’ and rise again in the post Ferguson period.