Why Manchester United are still the favourites this season

New manager David Moyes enjoyed a 4-1 opening day win away at Swansea City last weekend (Getty Images)

Ever since the great man retired and David Moyes took over at Manchester United, the Red Devils have been tipped to finish only third, behind Manchester City and Chelsea. However, this belief has not been supported by any particular reason, and is only a product of the skepticism surrounding the ability of David Moyes to manage a club as big as United.

Although Moyes has been widely criticised throughout the transfer window for his inability to land any top quality player, it is to be noted that, among the four teams that finished at the top last season, only City have been able to add to their squad successfully. Both Chelsea and Arsenal have been unable to land their targets (Wayne Rooney and Luis Suarez respectively).

With the team that Manchester United had last season, they are still the favourites to win the league this season, as the Special One is not that special any more. And with Manchester City under the leadership of a new manager Manuel Pellegrini who has no experience of the English league, the constant pressure on them to land silverware given the investment they have made, can still affect their performance on the pitch.

Not to mention, the problems of adapting to the style of play under their new manager and the time taken by their new players to adjust to the playing style in England.

Chelsea have also not made any significant additions to their squad and although Mourinho has an impressive profile, he will definitely not be able to produce the same impact that he had on Chelsea when he first came to England. And with his go-to-player Frank Lampard at an age where he cannot play at the top, week-in-week-out, Mourinho may still have to prove his ‘Speciality’ once again.

Coming back to Moyes, the Scot has inherited a winning squad from Sir Alex Ferguson with just the right mix of youth and experience. He also has the support of ex-United player Phil Neville and player-coach Ryan Giggs whom he can utilise as and when required.

Another advantage that David Moyes has over his rivals is that he has no pressure from within the club to produce results right from day one. Although a club like Manchester United always aims to win, the pressure of landing silverware at Chelsea and City is far more immense, and can have an impact on the performance of the players. Moyes already has a vast experience of the league and will not drastically change the playing style of Manchester United anytime soon.

With the transfer window coming to an end soon, Moyes still has some time left to go after his targets and sign the player he is looking for to take up the role of Paul Scholes.

Who do you think would be the perfect signing for David Moyes? Leave your comments below.