The United legend warns underperforming stars as a flurry of strategic midfield signings finally provides the tactical depth and fierce competition required to compete on multiple fronts.
Despite periods of frustration, off the pitch, Manchester United have almost achieved everything they wanted to do in the transfer window.
After missing out on the likes of Elliot Anderson and Mateus Fernandes, the club signed Andrey Santos, Youri Tielemans and now Carlos Baleba to complete their three-midfielder checklist.
With Andre Onana leaving on loan and Altay Bayindir out of favour and now also on loan, the club wanted to bring in a backup keeper and did so by signing Karl Darlow on a free transfer after he left Leeds United.
Five days remain in the transfer window, with the club wanting to bring in a left-back to complete what they set out to do this window.
Rooney praises competition in the squad.
While only having to play one game a week was part of the reason, Manchester United essentially played the same team last season, barring a few injury-related reasons. Especially in the midfield, where every week it was essentially Casemiro, Kobbie Mainoo and Bruno Fernandes, with Manuel Ugarte limited to bench appearances.
While the club could get away with it last season, with the Red Devils back in Europe, they had no option but to bolster the squad. Had they not done the rebuild in the fashion they did, they would have risked the injury crisis of the 24/25 season, where week in, week out, the squad was decimated.
With Tielemans and Mainoo having similar profiles, and Santos and Baleba both capable of playing in deeper and defensive profiles, United, for the first time in a long time, have squad depth with real quality.
Even under the likes of Erik ten Hag and Ole Gunnar Solskjær, it was largely the same players playing similarly to United last season, with squad depth in midfield always being an issue.
Wayne Rooney has also picked up on the competition for places and how it will only benefit United if they want to be competitive.
Speaking on the Stick to United show, he said: “It will be interesting with (Youri) Tielemans, (Andrey) Santos and (Kobbie) Mainoo, but this is what it should be. Competition for places. If you don’t play well, you don’t play.”
Tactical adaptability
For the longest time at Manchester United since Sir Alex Ferguson departed, the one thing that the club has been incapable of replacing is how the iconic manager built his squads. It felt as though for every position there were like-for-like replacements, but also different profiles to suit different games.
In all the teams post-Sir Alex, the Red Devils have always had like-for-like replacements but never different profiles for different games to make the side adaptable. For example, the club would often ask the likes of Fred, Scott McTominay, Marouane Fellaini, and Manuel Ugarte to do more than play in counter-attacking systems and become possession players.
Whereas now Carrick has intentionally built a squad where players can fulfil different roles. When the side wants to control possession, Tielemans, Mainoo, or even Mason Mount would be preferred. In games where the team might need to sit back, the likes of Santos and Baleba's strengths can come to the fore.
Now, hopefully, we can begin to see a side that can adapt to the fast tempo of play in the Premier League and the slower tempo in Europe.
