pre-season

[dropcap]J[/dropcap]osé Mourinho’s tired Manchester United squad flew back to England on Thursday, a five game tour of the United States having concluded with a narrow defeat to Barcelona in Washington D.C. That defeat was far from catastrophic, of course, and Mourinho will have confirmed much about his squad’s qualities and weaknesses over the past three weeks. It is the latter that was front of mind as United departed Dulles, bound for Manchester.

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[dropcap]B[/dropcap]y the time the Manchester United take to the field on Saturday night it will have been just 53 days since José Mourinho’s side beat Ajax to secure the Europa League. That victory earned the Reds a second major trophy of the season and a place in the Champions League. It turned a six out of 10 season into something better, relaxing some of the pressure on Mourinho to end four years of failure since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement. There is much more to do, of course, with Mourinho’s side finishing sixth in the Premier League last season. Improvement is certainly expected, with pre-season critical to ensuring United starts the new campaign on the front foot.

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In truth it has proven to be a mixed pre-season in the United States, although the manager departed the continent with an air of calm satisfaction. “Preparation time,” as Louis van Gaal call it, is traditional as a period of focus on fitness and match “rhythm” – not necessarily results. For Manchester United, with three victories and Thursday’s defeat to Paris Saint-Germain, there has been a touch of success in both this summer.

Thursday’s insipid defeat was perhaps the lowest point on tour, although not for all the obvious reasons. Defeat to the French side in the build-up to the opening Premier League fixture against Tottenham Hotpsur will bother the Dutchman little. The uninspiring nature of United’s capitulation might, although the veteran coach declared himself to be “really satisfied about the performance.”

The coach’s assessment was perhaps a little generous, albeit at a time when the Dutchman is keen to build on the positives from the past fortnight. “We lose, but maybe that is also good because last year we won everything and then we lost the first match in the Premier League,” admitted Van Gaa.

Truth be told, last week’s victory over Barcelona in Santa Clara aside, much of United’s football on tour has been of the plodding variety that dominated last autumn and winter, in a formation that Van Gaal is – at least in his own words – unlikely to used in the months ahead.

In victory over Club America in Seattle Van Gaal used 22 players – a side each half – seeking to build “rhythm” over understanding and attacking flow. It showed, with only Memphis Depay, Andrea Pereira and Matteo Darmian catching the eye. More, perhaps, for the novelty than the raw performance.

Meanwhile, 900 miles south in San Jose, United’s victory over the Earthquakes brought visceral criticism from the manager, especially of his younger players, of which a number have enjoyed minutes on this tour. It was a touch strident from the Dutch man if a point that worked in United’s favour during an at times exciting victory over European champions Barcelona. Three goals against Luis Enrique’s undercooked side were reward for a vibrant attacking display, but there should be plenty of warning in the three occasions on which the Catalans hit the woodwork.

If United’s attacking play, PSG excepted, has sometimes been dynamic, with Memphis and Juan Mata striking up a solid relationship in particular, then defensively and tactically the Reds remain a work in progress. In truth, United’s defensive performances as a unit have not been good in the States. Whatever moves United may still make in the market this summer, Van Gaal will focus on organisation back at Carrington over the next 10 days.

United’s coach will certainly seek to eliminate the “personal errors,” made against PSG. “You cannot fight against personal errors when you are playing at the top level,” he added.

Individually, Luke Shaw and Darmian have impressed, while Daley Blind’s four-game spell at centre-back offered a touch of class in distribution from the back. It is, however, dangerously worrying evidence that United has given up on acquiring the high-class experienced defender required.

Phil Jones will be fortunate indeed if he remains ahead of Chris Smalling come the season’s start, although Van Gaal has left the door open for the malfunctioning former Blackburn Rovers player. “I think I shall play Shaw with Darmian, and with Daley Blind,” offered the 62-year-old. “The right central position I have to consider.” Indeed, he must.

Tactically, Van Gaal deployed two defensive midfielders in all four fixtures, meaning that United has often struggled to drive enough bodies into attacking zones. This is not helped by Bastian Scheweinsteiger’s obvious lack of match sharpness nor Morgan Schneiderlin’s bedding in process. It is also not the formation many expected Van Gaal to field.

Whether Van Gaal lines up in a more conventional Dutch 4-3-3 against Spurs depends in part on Schweinsteiger’s ability to drive forward from midfield; and that formation is, it seems, also the only hope Ander Herrera still holds of forcing his way back into the team. United’s best player over the final three months of last season is once again back in the cold.

Indeed, Herrera’s exclusion from the startling line-up on tour might be taken as sign of Van Gaal’s potential caution in the weeks ahead. After all, his favoured central midfielders – Schweinsteiger, Schneiderlin and Michael Carrick – each hold a more defensive mindset than the Spaniard.

When pressed in the aftermath of United’s final tour match Van Gaal admitted that his team will “more or less” field a 4-3-3 in the coming campaign. Then again, the Dutchman made the same point on more than one occasion this summer. He used the formation not once on tour.

Taken at his word Van Gaal may have already settled on nine of his starting team against Tottenham: David de Gea, Darmian, Blind, Shaw, Schneiderlin, Mata, Ashley Young, Memphis and Wayne Rooney. Two from Carrick, Schweinsteiger, Smalling and Jones will complete a side that can be deployed in the shape promised, with Memphis on United’s left, or in the system used on tour, with three in support of Rooney.

Whatever the tactical questions, Van Gaal’s squad also has the air of being incomplete. Not least because De Gea and Angel di Maria’s futures are still to be decided. The Argentinian is likely to join PSG once the formalities of transfer negotiations are complete, while De Gea may yet be forced to play out the final year of his contract with United. De Gea has, by all accounts, remained solidly professional, albeit the Spaniard’s mistake, leading to a PSG goal on Thursday, might hint at a lack of focus.

Losing De Gea at this stage would mark a significant blow to United’s hopes of building a Premier League title challenge. By contrast, few at Old Trafford will miss Di Maria, with the winger believed to be camped out in his homeland awaiting word from Paris. Di Maria’s exit, together with Pedro’s probable arrival, may well be the last attacking changes of the summer.

Still, away from the squad, the tour has predominantly been of Van Gaal’s conception in microscopic detail – and to his liking. From the shortened programme, with fewer commercial responsibilities, to a focus on the training ground at the expense of additional pre-season games – all of the Dutchman’s making. It is also Van Gaal’s decision to spend the final 10 days’ build-up focused on training, with only behind-closed-doors games in preparation.

“I have to say I have seen a lot of very good things from my team. So in the pre-season it is more about the performance than the result. I was rather satisfied,” concludes the Dutchman.

United is certainly in superior shape than at this stage last season – and the squad is almost fully fit. Supporters remain optimistic with good reason. After all, four of United’s five summer acquisitions have performed solidly on tour and the fifth – Sergio Romero – will see only minimal action over the next year.

That last nagging doubt, over United’s defensive frailties, could yet be patched up in a transfer market that has a month to run. That, or Van Gaal will earn his keep on the training ground. It is his preferred habitat.

It has been just 43 days since Manchester United last played – a drab scoreless draw against Hull City at the KC Stadium. Yet, Louis van Gaal’s return to work last week signaled the start of United’s “preparation time” ahead of the new season, which begins when Tottenham Hotspur visit Old Trafford on 8 August. Indeed, with the Dutchman’s players gathering for pre-season training on Monday, Van Gaal’s squad has just over a month before the Premier League kicks off once again. With a short tour of the United States planned this summer, and a manager now firmly in place, expectations are high that United will start the campaign proper in more positive fashion than a year ago.

Louis van Gaal’s insistence that the club cuts down the tour schedule will remove a long-held concern that the true objective placed by the club’s hierarchy on pre-season is commercial rather than “preparation.” Both the Dutchman, and David Moyes in the summer of 2013, have complained about pre-season’s intensity. Especially sponsors’ demands. This complaint has been at least partly addressed, with the club set to play just four games in the States this summer, to five the year before, and with fewer commercial-led requirements demanded.

United will start pre-season fixtures a week earlier than in 2014 and complete the tour inside 12 days, with games scheduled in Seattle, San Jose, Santa Clara and Chicago. Travel, although not light when it involves a transatlantic flight, will not force the squad to criss-cross the US this summer as it did last. With no confirmed domestic warm-up date ahead of United’s Premier League start Van Gaal can have few complaints about a heavy schedule.

“Last year in the United States of America, we won everything playing against big, top clubs, and then we had to play our first match against Swansea City and we lost. That cannot happen next year. The most important aspect is building up our team with individual players so they are thinking like a team, but also we need fitness and match rhythm. We have to play matches, but we also have to train. The problem was when we went to America we didn’t have so many times to train because we had to fly and travel a lot.

“Now though, we have improved our America tour because we have two basecamps and can build up our fitness better. Last year we had a lot of time differences.”

With the schedule set to Van Gaal’s liking the veteran coach can keep at least half an eye on the transfer market, although United has added only the Dutch winger Memphis Depay to the squad to date. With just a week before before the squad sets off for the west coast there remains legitimate fears that United faces yet another last-minute dash around Europe to fill obvious limitations to Van Gaal’s side.

At least the Dutchman enjoys a mostly fit squad. While the traveling party is yet to be finalised, most of the squad has enjoyed a reasonable summer break, with few suffering for tournament commitments. Only Argentinians Marcos Rojo and Angel di Maria may need to miss part of the US tour due to lengthy participation in Copa America. Still, Van Gaal will no doubt be hugely relieved, not least with United facing two decisive Champions League qualification games in mid-August.

And once again the tour will be a chance for some of United’s youngsters to earn a place in Van Gaal’s squad, with Patrick McNair, Tyler Blackett and – to a lesser extent – Reece James having used last summer to force their way into the Dutchman’s first team plans. Andreas Pereira will surely play some part over the next month despite featuring in the Under-20 World Cup earlier this summer. Javier Hernández, injured and due to be sold, and Nani, sold to Fenerbahce this week, will play no part, although Robin Van Persie and David de Gea remain at the club longer than many expected.

United vs Club América – 8pm, 17 July – CenturyLink Field, Seattle
Club América lays claim to being the most successful side in Mexican history, having won a record 12 league titles and five Copa México trophies. Formed in 1916, América plays at Estadio Azteca – home to the comically deep nets of the 1986 World Cup and more than 95,000 fans. Managed by former Mexico coach Ignacio Ambríz, Las Águilas boasts a mix of local and South American talent in a squad that finished second in Torneo Clausura in May. América appointed Ambríz as the season closed when former coach Gustavo Matosas was sacked after just six months in charge.

The game takes place at Seattle’s CenturyLink Field, which is home to both the Seattle Seahawks NFL team and the Sounders MLS side. Located in the heart of downtown Seattle, CenturyLink field was completed in 2002 using public money and seats around 67,000 fans in a well-appointed stadium. It is a notoriously rowdy venue during Seahawks matches, where the fans once recorded a ‘roar’ at more than 136.6 decibels. Although the Sounders regularly attract more than 40,000 to MLS games the atmosphere is far more likely to be ‘pre-season sedate’ come 17 July.

United vs San Jose Earthquakes – 8pm, 21 July – Avaya Stadium, San Jose
San Jose was home to an original North American Soccer League team, operating under the Earthquakes moniker from 1974 to 1988. Indeed, George Best played 56 games for the club in ’80/81, scoring 21 goals. NASL closed after the ’84 season, although the club played in the Western Soccer League until ’88 when the outfit finally folded, albeit living on through ownership as the San Francisco Bay Blackhawks.

Despite being resurrected in ’94 as an inaugural MLS team the Earthquakes have failed to make an impression in recent seasons. The club finished last in the Western Conference in 2014 – 18th overall – although the Earthquakes can boast two Supporters Shield titles for the best record in the regular season in 2005 and 2012 and MLS Cup victory in 2001 and 2003.

The game will be played at the Earthquakes’ ‘soccer specific’ Avaya Stadium, which houses just 18,000 fans, and is located on the outskirts of Mineta San José International Airport. The original venue for this tie – the California Memorial Stadium, located on the Berkley campus and home to the University of California Golden Bears ‘football’ team – was apparently changed at Van Gaal’s behest, with the Dutchman loathe to make his players travel 45 miles north through the Bay area’s notorious rush-hour traffic.

United vs Barcelona – 1pm, 25 July – Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara
Barcelona’s La Liga campaign does not start until 15 August so Los Culés might well be a touch under-cooked come matchday against United – not that the European Champions will provide anything but the sternest test. Luis Enrique’s outfit won La Liga, Copa del Rey and the Champions League last season, although the campaign did not pass without drama. In fact Enrique’s continued employment at Camp Nou beyond this summer came under question more than once over the past year.

On the pitch, Lionel Messi may not take part due to the Copa America tournament in Chile this summer, leaving Enrique with a strike duo of Neymar and Luis Suarez. The pair scored ‘just’ the 64 goals last season.

Newly opened Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara is home to the San Francisco 49ers NFL team and holds just under 70,000. It is scheduled to host Super Bowl 50 next February and was built at a cost of more than $1.3 billion.  The 49ers atmospheric old venue on Candlestick Bay was closed when the team moved to Levi’s in 2014.

United vs Paris Saint-Germain – 8pm, 29 July – Soldier Field, Chicago
Qatari-owned PSG cantered to the Ligue 1 title last season. It was a third victorious campaign in a row. Mind you, Laurent Blanc’s side secured the trophy by just the eight points last May – a low over that three-year period. Former United defender Blanc remains manager despite Rouge-et-Bleu’s failure to make an impression on the Champions League although – with Financial Fair Play restrictions now lifted – PSG will once again compete at the top table of the European transfer market this summer. Whatever the coming spend Blanc’s squad is replete with talent, including the incomparable Zlatan Ibrahimović, and Ed Woodward’s wet-dream, Edinson Cavani.

The fixture will be played at the 60,000-capacity Soldier Field. The stadium opened in 1924, making it the oldest operational NFL venue, albeit with more than $800 million having been recently spent on renovations in recent years. Soldier Field is home to the Chicago Bears NFL team, but the Chicago Fire MLS outfit moved out in 2005. United lost to Bayern Munich at the venue in summer 2004.

Louis van Gaal’s 25-man Manchester United squad set flight for California on Friday ahead of a three-week pre-season tour of the United States – a regular summer fixture with so many stateside with sponsors to please. Games follow against LA Galaxy, AS Roma, Internazionale and Real Madrid before the Reds return home for the Premier League kick off in August.

It is a summer tour of marked contrast to the 2013 variant in Asia-Pac. High quality opposition, a van Gaal-led training camp, and some fresh faces to boot – there are many grounds on which to feel optimistic that the coming weeks will set United fair for the season ahead. Not least because whatever faults remain in United’s squad – and there are many still as yet uncorrected – none will be exacerbated by David Moyes.

Where Moyes was star-struck on United’s pre-season tour in 2013, van Gaal waltzed into Old Trafford on Thursday every bit a United manager. Arrogance, confidence, an unbreakable worldview – call it what you want – but Reds man, woman and child, know a United manager when they see one. Whisper it quietly, but there is just a touch of Sir Alex Ferguson in United’s new Dutchman.

There will be plenty of analysis of the former Ajax, Barcelona and Bayern Munich manager to come. For now he has just shy of a month to get his squad into shape for the season ahead – and just two further weeks to seal any additions to a squad that is short an experienced central defender, high-quality box-to-box midfielder and goal-scoring winger.

van Gaal is taking a strong squad to the States, with the English World Cup contingent all making the trip west. Robin van Persie, Marouane Fellaini, and Adnan Januzaj have been given a post World Cup break, while Javier Hernández joins part way though.

New signings Luke Shaw and Ander Herrera are also in van Gaal’s travelling party, while youngsters Tyler Blackett, Michael Keane, Reece James and Will Keane travel. James Wilson, who scored on début towards the end of last season, will be disappointed to have been left at home.

van Gaal’s side is competing in the eight team ‘International Champions Cup’, with the participants divided in two groups of four, and the group winners set to meet at the Sun Life Stadium in Miami on 4 August.

Tour squad: De Gea, Lindegaard, Amos, Johnstone, Rafael, Evans, Smalling, Jones, Shaw, Blackett, M Keane, James, Herrera, Cleverley, Fletcher, Young, Zaha, Kagawa, Mata, Valencia, Nani, Lingard, Welbeck, Rooney, W Keane.

Manchester United v LA Galaxy – Rose Bowl, Pasadena – 24 July, 4.06 am
Beckham’s former club has enjoyed a mixed start to the MLS campaign, although is now unbeaten in seven games – the prelude, perhaps, to a strong second half of the season. Third in the Western Conference, behind runaway leaders Seattle Sounders, Bruce Arena’s side is still in the hunt for a ninth MLS title overall. The side contains some familiar names in Robbie Keane, Landon Donovan and Robbie Rogers, although Omar Gonzalez alone made the US national squad that reached the World Cup round of 16 in Brazil.

Usually based at the 30,00 capacity StubHub Center in Carson, the fixture against United will be played at the 92,000 Rose Bowl, below, 25 miles away in Pasadena. The Rose Bowl is home to the UCLA American Football team, but also staged the 1994 World Cup final, where Roberto Bagio missed a crucial penalty in the shoot-out to hand Brazil the trophy. In 1984 more than 101,000 people saw the France beat Brazil 2-0 in the Olympic Gold Medal match.

United will hold an open training session at the venue on Tuesday, July 22 at 7pm local time.

Manchester United v AS Roma – Sports Authority Field, Denver – 26 July, 9.06pm
Roma finished second to Juventus in the 2013/14 Serie A season, although some 17 points adrift. Former Lille manager Rudi García was a surprise choice for the Head Coach role when appointed in June 2013, but won over many doubters as the Giallorossi stormed to 10 Serie A victories in a row at the start of the campaign. Roma failed to maintain that form, but secured Champions League football with some comfort. Mehdi Benatia, Miralem Pjanic, Daniele De Rossi and Kevin Strootman are familiar names, while former England left-back Ashley Cole joined during earlier this month.

The match will be played at the 76,000-capacity Sports Authority Field at Mile High – home to NFL team Denver Broncos. Opened in September 2001, the new venue was built adjacent to the original ‘Mile High Stadium’, with many fans – and even the Denver Post – refusing to name the stadium after the original sponsors Invesco. ‘Against Modern Football’ – whatever kind of football that might be.

United will also hold open training in Denver, with the session at Sport Authority Field on Friday, 25 July.

Manchester United v Inter Milan – FedEx Field, Washington DC – 30 July, 12.30am
It was a disastrous season for the Milan clubs in 2013/14, although Inter at least qualified for the Europa League by finishing fifth in Serie A. Nerazzurri coach Walter Mazzarri kept his job despite the disappointing campaign, although the expectation is that he leads Inter back into the Champions League in the coming months. Former United defender Nemanja Vidić joined in June, alongside Frenchman Yann M’Vila, although it has been a low-key window to date. Rodrigo Palacio, Hernanes, and Fredy Guarín all featured in the World Cup.

FedEx Field played host to United in 2011, with the Reds beating Barcelona 2-1 in front of 81,807 fans. Usually home to NFL’s Washington Redskins, the stadium can hold more than 85,000 fans, although it is not universally popular with supporters – not least because the stadium is 15 miles from downtown Washington.

Manchester United v Real Madrid – Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor – 2 August, 9.06pm
Los Merengues failed to capture La Liga in 2013/14 after coming in third behind champions Atlético Madrid and rivals Barcelona. While the league performance hurt, Carlo Ancelotti kept his job after Real captured the Champions League for a record 10th time. Many of the Real squad went to the World Cup, although few will be welcomed ‘home’ with as much excitement as world champion Toni Kroos. The German joined Real last week for around £20 million – surely the bargain of the summer.

United’s final game of the summer tour – save for a potential final in Miami – will take place at ‘The Big House’, Ann Arbor’s Michigan Stadium. The 109,000 capacity venue is usually host to the University of Michigan American Football team, the Wolverines, and is the largest stadium in the United States – the third largest non-racing stadium in the world.

Manchester United v Valencia CF – Old Trafford – 12 August, 7.30pm
United completes pre-season against Valencia at Old Trafford. Los Che arrives in Manchester with a new manager in Nuno Espirito Santo after a period of turmoil at Valencia. Years of financial trouble, necessitating repeated sales of leading players in order to balance the books, may be over with Peter Lim taking control in May. The Singaporean bought up more than 70 per cent of Valencia from the club’s foundation – a move that fans hope brings a period of stability and, after a long wait, a new stadium too.

* all times BST