Will Arsenal or Manchester United win the Premier League next season?
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Version 0 of 1. Do they have the squad to succeed and whom do they have to sign to win the title? Arsenal Although the nature of Thierry Henry’s criticism about Arsenal’s spine recently irked Arsène Wenger, the legendary striker of old had a point. An upgrade in the goalkeeping department is logical. Wojciech Szczesny (who started the season as first choice) and David Ospina (who finishes it) have had flaws exposed compared with the best around. In midfield, although Francis Coquelin has been a revelation in blocking all and sundry, some contests require an anchoring player with added finesse. A Morgan Schneiderlin-esque addition would be welcome to complement the essentials Coquelin brings. Up front, an alternative/improvement to Olivier Giroud – probably the hardest signing to achieve – is needed to take the next step. Danny Welbeck, in an injury-hit season, has had some positive moments but is still to convince on the ruthlessness stakes. Spinally, only the centre-back position looks well covered, especially as more is expected of the January signing Gabriel Paulista after half a season’s adaptation time. Related: Football: 10 talking points from this weekend’s action Manchester United “Balance” is rivalling “philosophy” for prominence in the Louis van Gaal lexicon as the manager points to his search for this in his squad. “It’s not a question of how big or how many numbers of players, it’s how the balance is. When you have, for every position, two equal levelled players, then I’m happy,” he says of what is required this close season to make United serious contenders. The greatest threat here is if David de Gea departs and Van Gaal cannot recruit a world-class replacement for the goalkeeper. By signing, say, Tottenham Hotspur’s Hugo Lloris the Dutchman will hope to solve this. Yet the manager needs to recruit more. A gun midfielder: Juventus’s Paul Pogba would suit. A right-back: Everton’s Séamus Coleman is being considered. A central defender: the No1 target is Mats Hummels. At least one striker: Harry Kane is one under consideration. And if Gareth Bale can be prised away from Real Madrid this would be a clear game-changer. What does the manager have to change for the team to win the title? Arsenal The most costly points-dropping department came against teams just below the Champions League contenders. Against Tottenham, Southampton, Swansea and Stoke, a total of seven points out of a possible 24 reveals where the biggest problem came. Over the season as a whole there is an upward trend in terms of performance and Wenger needs for the sense of progression to continue. There are a series of plus points from 2014-15. Alexis Sánchez seemingly bionic at times, has had a superb first season in the Premier League. Mesut Özil embroiders games with more authority now. A couple of youngsters have emerged with great credit, notably the reducer Coquelin and the speedster right-back Héctor Bellerín. Santi Cazorla has shown leadership as well as luscious touches. The balance between the team has evolved, making Arsenal tougher to beat. They are still susceptible to defensive brain freezes but that problem is less chronic than before. If they can crank it up another few degrees in all departments they can get closer to the champions. Manchester United There has to be an adjustment in the Van Gaal mentality. The scintillating Sir Alex Ferguson sides attacked with a near-wild abandon that terrorised the opposition on most game days. Caution is part of Van Gaal’s managerial nature so he will never put out cavalier United XIs in the manner of Ferguson but the 63-year-old should be able to recalibrate his approach to go on the front foot more. At the moment Van Gaal instructs his players to hog possession, resulting in too many lateral passes. If he were to instruct them that aiming for the jugular should be the default position when roving forward his Manchester United would be transformed. To this end pace should become a permanent characteristic so the arrival of the jet-heeled Memphis Depay in the summer from PSV Eindhoven will help. What do the players have to do better for the team to win the title? Arsenal First things first, speed out the blocks in the Premier League. Arsenal are in the habit of creating long points‑gathering runs after Christmas but there was too much to catch up this time after a sluggish start. Avoiding their usual Champions League qualifier should be helpful on that front. Then – and apologies if this sounds like stating the bleedin’ obvious – imposing themselves on Chelsea in head-to-head matches still feels like a big deal. It is notable that after last season’s general catastrophes against the strongest opponents, the improvement has been marked with one enduring exception. Wenger actually walked off from away matches against the top four with more points than José Mourinho did. Comparing top-four performances with last season’s nightmares for Wenger shows that valuable lessons have been learned and confidence increased. But Chelsea remain under their skin. It is hard to overstate what a win against the current champions could potentially do to Arsenal’s self belief. Manchester United Van Gaal’s buzzword next season should be “consistency”. This term United have eked out results to finish in what is likely to be fourth position, which in the context of the uneven displays is a good sign. But the manager is concerned sides are not being killed off, as was the case on Sunday at Old Trafford when Arsenal were allowed back into the contest to snatch a 1-1 draw after being dominated for large passages. From mid-March to mid-April, when United defeated Tottenham, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Manchester City, Van Gaal’s side were transformed into a fleet-footed, high-pressing proposition that steamrollered allcomers. The players should remember these performances and also become more savvy when holding a marginal lead, as against Arsenal. Confidence continues to be rebuilt following last season’s shattering under David Moyes, and Wayne Rooney and company will hope to regain the killer focus Van Gaal says is missing. What else can improve, including off the field? Arsenal It generally comes down to tweaking, rather than radical changes. This is because the current season has provided evidence that a lot of radical changes have been addressed. The familiar finger-pointing – not enough leaders! Fragility at set pieces! Where is plan B? They are so predictable! Everyone knows about Arsenal’s soft centre! Why is the treatment room full to bursting? – has become less necessary. Notably, in the medical department they seem considerably fitter at the end of this season. Overall they are not quite at the required level yet. The Monaco debacle and, more recently, the classic smash-and-grab executed by Swansea, demonstrate how they can still slump into bad habits of not making the most of their chances and getting suddenly caught the other end. Wenger’s famous “handbrake” description still undermines them sometimes. An improved mental focus won’t do any harm. Manchester United The number of injuries was a concern in the first half of the campaign, though the problems has since eased and Van Gaal last week professed himself content on the subject. Yet he and his staff should plot to ensure this does not occur again when the 2015-16 campaign starts, as having a squad clear of the disruption of injury is the base requirement for healthy competition and the establishment of a fluid team rhythm. Van Gaal has made one major adjustment to the off-field running of the club by ensuring the coming summer tour of America is only a fortnight long and has two bases rather than the planes, trains and automobiles nature of last year’s slog across the country. The flip side of this is that the manager and his charges really have no excuses for failing to prepare properly for next season. Big season for? Arsenal Jack Wilshere. Has returned to fitness with great zest in his cameos. A fully fit season would be liberating for him. Manchester United Phil Jones. The sight of Chris Smalling leading Manchester United in the absence of Rooney against Arsenal was a telling pronouncement of how Van Gaal views the defender. It immediately showed Jones’s status as lower in the manager’s eyes and suggested the next year will be a fight for the 22-year-old. Van Gaal remains intent on signing Hummels and the German would expect to go straight into the team to partner Smalling in central defence, pushing Jones out. |