Manchester United are four games unbeaten in the Premier League. Since Ruben Amorim last tasted defeat, Anfield has been conquered, and it was goals galore during that thrilling win over Brighton at Old Trafford.
Here have been the first baby steps in a long and arduous journey toward the future, and with that exciting thought dancing at the back of the fans’ minds, we are inevitably turned back to the past.
Because it’s been a long, long time since the Red Devils enjoyed consistency at the top of the table, battling year on year for the biggest titles. Sir Alex Ferguson has not celebrated a Premier League or Champions League title from the stands.
If Amorim hopes to lead United back to such elusive glory, he will need more than just a string of favourable results to his name. He will need to rethread the Fergie feeling into the club’s DNA.
Curiously, there are signs this is taking place, with a number of United stars showing elements of that bygone era in recent weeks.
The Fergie-esque Man Utd stars
Topically, Amad Diallo would fancy himself worthy of a place in one of Ferguson’s one-time squads. The Ivory Coast international has developed something of a penchant for late goals, after all.
In fact, all ten of Amad’s Premier League goals have come in the second half.
However, he’s not alone in that regard. The frontline has been a place of contention for the Theatre of Dreams in recent years, and especially so since Amorim arrived and ousted the likes of Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho and Jadon Sancho.
Matheus Cunha looks a cut above, and even though the Brazilian has not yet found his Midas touch in front of goal, his quality is undeniable, with writer Wayne Burton claiming he has the “potential to be an all-timer”, so talented that he might be “the best player we’ve had since Fergie retired”.
Lofty praise, but undoubtedly wearing a ring of truth. This is all to say that there are promising signs at Old Trafford. Bryan Mbeumo looks a star, and given that he has singled out Cristiano Ronaldo as one of his biggest influences, you can see him succeeding in the long run. The Cameroonian plays with the same kind of robust potency as CR7 once did when cutting his teeth under Fergie’s wing.
United still need to make more improvements though, and the current struggles of wing-back Diogo Dalot emphasise the need for new blood on the flanks to help Amorim realise his lofty ambitions.
Once, Gary Neville dominated for the elite outfit; so underrated nowadays, the retired Three Lions star is one of the finest full-backs of his generation.
Dalot, 26, doesn’t look like he’s going to make that grade after once arriving from Porto as a teenager with such promise.
He’s not the only one, though. This is a recurring problem, and one which recalls a time when Sir Alex felt he had landed the next version of Neville, only for this player to fail to kick on.
The Fergie flop who was billed as the next Neville
The Fergie era at Manchester United was defined by meteoric highs. On the transfer front, the Red Devils had the ascendancy within the English game, but a few potential stars fell by the wayside.
One of which would be Rafael Da Silva, who did spend seven seasons at Old Trafford after graduating from the Carrington ranks, but perhaps failed to ever reach the potential his manager saw in him.
Time was when Rafael was viewed as having the potential to become a superstar. He and his twin brother Fabio had been brought over from Brazilian club Fluminense in February 2007, and he would make 170 appearances across all competitions, scoring five goals and supplying 14 assists.
Rafael’s time at the club could hardly be defined as a failure, but he probably served as more of a bit-part player than an instrumental cog in the machine.
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A three-time Premier League champion he may be, but Ferguson believed he was destined for greatness. The retired manager said in 2012, “I think Rafael will eventually be compared to Gary Neville.”
This didn’t end up being the case. Rafael ended up leaving when under louis van Gaal’s management, at odds with the Dutch manager, and several contentious career events beforehand, coupled with injuries, left his former manager’s prediction untrue.
There’s no question that he is fondly remembered, even considered by some supporters to be something of a cult hero, but Rafael was abundantly talented, and there really was a chance that he could have filled the void that was left when Neville wound down.
A fearless and tenacious attitude, coupled with a burning desire to make things happen and excite the crowd, won the Manchester crowds over instantly, and maybe why we look back now with an air of ruefulness about Rafael’s fizzled-out finish at the club, leaving for French side Lyon in 2015 for a small £2.5m fee.
In any case, it’s funny that you might say his robust and dynamic profile would be well-suited to the current Amorim-led system, but this only emphasises the need for a Neville-esque figure to ensure this new chapter at the club keeps moving forward after such interminable turmoil.
Because sadly, it feels like Dalot has fallen down a similar route, with content creator Liam Canning saying recently that the Portugual international is “becoming a worry long term”, given that he “doesn’t look like he suits the wing back role”.
Neville might be modest about his ability as a Premier League footballer, but it would take to knock him off that all-timer pedestal.
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