Louis Van Gaal had stated during his first year with Manchester United that he expected the club to challenge for the title, while that did not transpire last time around, the fans would be hopeful that they get to see United battle it out for the crown similar to the years under Sir Alex Ferguson.
The problem for Van Gaal is the squad that he had to work with, despite spending millions on bringing in talented players like Di Maria, Herrera and Blind, the club failed to produce the kind of beautiful, relentless attacking football they are known for. What fans got was a more pragmatic United, etching out wins and being generally difficult to beat. The club did make it back into the Champions League but were nowhere near the top of the Premier League table.
The club would need to spend massively yet again to ensure they can challenge for the title, United have to strengthen in almost every department and the one department where they had no problems at all, the goalkeeping, could be the biggest issue if David de Gea does complete a move to Real Madrid.
First things first, United have to bring in a quality striker who can play alongside Wayne Rooney. Last season saw the likes of Radamel Falcao and Robin Van Persie struggle to find any sort of form and that left Rooney to do all the scoring or most of it. The need of a top striker is more evident since Falcao left after his loan deal expired and Van Persie could follow the Colombian out of United as he contemplates a move back to his home country, the Netherlands.
The midfield probably does not need strengthening as long as Fellaini is played in a holding role rather than the ‘lump it up for me to head it’, Van Gaal must show some sort of confidence in the Belgian and with the likes of Young, Depay, Di Maria and Mata to help out in the creativity department, United should not have to worry about their midfield constantly lacking ideas or steam.
The defence is the biggest worry for Manchester United fans, although they have Rojo playing as a centre-back, the club needs to bring in a couple of world class central defenders and that should be the number one priority, unless de Gea leaves. The likes of Jones, Smalling and Evans cannot be trusted enough; they are great as squad players but cannot start every game for the club.
The need for around 4-5 top quality signings for United should be enough, hopefully, to get them going again in the Premier League. Louis Van Gaal does have a tough job on his hands, but no one stated that this would be easy. Manchester United is still regarded as one of the biggest clubs in the world and with that burden on the shoulders; you need to ensure they are back where they belong, on top and challenging for titles.