After a summer filled with transfer speculation Manchester Utd have acquired two new talents so far. I expect two or three more high quality arrivals into Manchester before the summer transfer window closes on the 8th of August at 5pm. Manchester United have had a very strong pre-season campaign and the question is can Ole Gunnar Solskjær bring the Red Devils back to the top of English football?

They look to have opted for a youthful approach in the transfer market signing Aaron Wan-Bissaka for £49.5m and Daniel James for £15.3m. Bissaka is an exciting addition and he should really improve the right-hand side of the defence. The 21-year-old had 35 appearances last season he managed 3 assists and 12 clean sheets. He obviously has a lot of pressure on him with the transfer fee, but I think he will excel. Daniel James was a good value signing he is breath takingly quick and has some good stats last season with 4 goals and 7 assists in the Championship. Although not tested in the Premier League he could well play an important role this season.

Off the pitch speculation could damage United. Paul Pogba has been regularly linked with a move away from the club. He will be a vital element of Solskjær midfield if they can hold onto him. He takes this United team to the next level when he’s on the field and playing well. Lukaku is another man that needs to make his mind up. Inter seem to want him and personally I think they could afford to lose him when they have the likes of Rashford to replace him.

United play Chelsea at home on the opening day and it is important that they lay down a marker. I feel both these teams will be in a bitter fight for top four and whoever wins this match will have an important phycological advantage facing the rest of the season. Solskjær needs to figure out his best 11 this season at times last year it seemed they looked a bit ragged. However, there has been promising signs coming out of their pre-season tour with many young players making break throughs.

United really must clear out some players who aren’t up to it. The likes of Rojo, Jones, Sanchez and Young are drawing huge wages are they justifying it? I don’t think so. If they are putting their faith in youth, they must commit to it. In pre-season there have been encouraging signs with Mason Greenwood and Tahith Chong emerging as promising talents. Greenwood scored the winner against Inter and looks to have an all-round tidy game. Chong won a penalty in the 4-0 win against Leeds. The Manchester United youth academy deserve great credit for these two talents. It will be interesting to see if Martial and Rashford really can step up and put this club back where it belongs. Both really need to be performing consistently week in week out for the Red Devils to climb back to the summit of English football.

Ultimately, I think Solskjær needs time more than anything. Time to work with the young players he has, it might not be United’s season this year but the top four would be no bad result for a team in transition. They are not the finished article by any means however with time left in the transfer market you can be sure they will bring in two or three more big money signings. There is no defending the poor finish to last season and they will have to improve considerably if they want to achieve top four. It’s important not to get to carried away with the successful pre-season but wins against quality opposition like Tottenham and Inter is always a big confidence boost. It should be a fascinating season ahead will we see a rejuvenate Manchester Solskjær United?

Please subscribe to our mailing list and feel free to comment below to ensure the content keeps coming. Find us on twitter @pitchside_view