The last of the players to file solemnly and silently out of Manchester United’s dressing room at Wembley and on to the team bus on Saturday evening was Raphael Varane. Then the doors swung shut and this team left together for the final time.
Phase one of Erik ten Hag’s rebuild at United is over and it has gone better than many expected. But changes are coming.
United may look a little different when they begin pre-season against Lyon at Murrayfield next month, and most certainly by the time they kick off Ten Hag’s second season in August.
Even if they had somehow found a way to throw a spanner in the works of this Manchester City machine, the Dutchman would have pressed on with his plans to take United to the next level. The biggest talking point in the wake of a painful Cup final defeat was his goalkeeper David de Gea.
If you could forgive De Gea for not moving for Ilkay Gundogan’s first goal, his slow reaction for the German’s second was harder to excuse. The Spaniard won this season’s Premier League Golden Glove award, but there has been plenty of criticism to go with it.
David De Gea put in a poor display in the FA Cup final against Man City as United lost 2-1
Erik ten Hag has several decisions to make this summer as he continues to reshape his squad
Once again at Wembley, his distribution was erratic — certainly in comparison to Stefan Ortega, City’s second-choice keeper who conceded his first goal in six FA Cup ties this season when Bruno Fernandes equalised from the penalty spot. Having a keeper who can play out from the back is central to Ten Hag’s philosophy, just as it is to Pep Guardiola’s. It was one of the reasons Guardiola made the bold decision to jettison Joe Hart when he took over at City in 2016.
De Gea is on the verge of signing a new contract. The 32-year-old has agreed terms but it has yet to be signed off by United, and what unfolded at Wembley could still have consequences. At the very least, De Gea knows his No 1 status is no longer guaranteed.
Roy Keane is a long-time critic and Peter Schmeichel, United’s Treble-winning goalkeeper, had no sympathy when asked to analyse how Gundogan’s volley bounced twice and still crept in.
Another pressing issue for Ten Hag is that of Harry Maguire. United’s captain got on the pitch for the last two minutes of normal time to lift the Carabao Cup in February, but there was no room for sentiment on Saturday.
Maguire remained on the bench and then, oddly, took off his tracksuit at full time. But he didn’t mingle with the rest of the players, commiserating with them and trying to raise spirits as a captain should.
Maguire stood forlornly by the United dugout talking to technical director Darren Fletcher, detached and disconnected from the rest of the group.
It has been sad to watch the decline of a good player and a good man, but the bottom line is that Maguire doesn’t fit into Ten Hag’s plans.
Not unless he is happy being fourth-choice centre back. Just 16 starts in 62 games tells its own story. Maguire, 30, is still good enough to play for his country, and as he reports for England duty next week he will know this cannot continue.
United, too, must find a solution and get Maguire a new club even if they have to pay him £10million to go.
If that is not possible — and it surely has to be — then Victor Lindelof is likely to be next in line for the exit.
Lindelof has stepped up to partner Varane in the wake of Lisandro Martinez’s season-ending metatarsal injury and done a fine job, even if his rather weak header presented Gundogan with the chance to fire City ahead after just 12 seconds.
The Swede is one of a number of players who have improved under Ten Hag but remain short of what United require — Jadon Sancho, Diogo Dalot, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Fred and Scott McTominay also fall into that category.
But with the number of fringe players leaving Old Trafford this summer already pushing the cull into double figures, Ten Hag can only shift so many of the 20 men on duty at Wembley. Change will take time and, worryingly for United, you don’t see them closing the gap on City soon.
It is fair to assume, though, that there will be no more McFred after this summer with one of United’s two central midfielders set to be sold. Fred got the nod over McTominay at Wembley, but it will depend what offers come in.
De Gea arguably should’ve been in a better position for Ilkay Gundogan’s second goal for City
‘I still don’t know,’ said Fred. ‘I have to talk with my family. I have to talk with Ten Hag as well. He’s the manager and the conversation has to involve everyone. We have to see how next season will plan out. I want to be important, I want to help the team, so we’ll see.’
Anthony Martial is another who may have played his last game for the club, with United determined to sign a world-class striker this summer assuming Marcus Rashford also agrees a new contract.
The erratic Frenchman missed the Cup final with a hamstring tear and Ten Hag isn’t the first United manager to be frustrated by his infuriating injury record.
When Ten Hag needed a goal to take City to extra time, it was a symbol of United’s inferiority that he turned to Wout Weghorst.
The Dutchman was a stop-gap signing in January and has served a purpose. But there was a moment at Wembley when he tried to trap a ball and it went further than most City players pass it.
The futures of several other squad members like Harry Maguire are also uncertain this summer
Weghorst will return to his parent club Burnley — technically at least — but is unlikely to be seen in a United shirt again. The same can be said for other loan signings Marcel Sabitzer and Jack Butland, United’s No 2 keeper at Wembley.
Ten Hag will move on to phase two, but for now he deserves credit at the end of a long and, at times, turbulent season. Was it only in November that United bundled Cristiano Ronaldo unceremoniously out of the door?
Ten Hag is rebuilding the foundations of this club. If you consider the mess he inherited a year ago, it has been a solid start.
Trouble is, the neighbours have just got a new conservatory and are about to begin work on a swimming pool.
