These are strange times at Old Trafford: Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s 25% investment in Manchester United has been approved by the Premier League. They have won their last 4 matches in all competitions and have not lost a match this year. They have a young, dynamic striker who is playing extremely effectively. Are things finally starting to work in Man United’s favor?

Of course, everything is relative. It feels like every detail related to this team comes with a warning. Although they are still keeping a 4-point gap with the team behind Newcastle, they still cannot approach the top 4 (MU is ranked sixth). They are still 8 points behind Aston Villa (fourth place); The gap could have been even wider had Scott McTominay not scored the winner in the 86th minute at Villa Park last Sunday. They conceded 3 goals in the last 20 minutes of the match against Wolves 2 weeks ago, but luckily they won 4-3.

Man United’s goal difference is 0, less than 8 other teams before round 25. Should fans of this club be optimistic, when things are happening quite similar to last season: The team they love has a series of narrow victories, including late victories. Arsenal’s 6-goal destruction of West Ham made MU’s 3-0 home victory over this team last week somewhat modest. Even going to Newport County caused them many difficulties in the FA Cup.

That’s why we shouldn’t draw a definite conclusion about MU. But the truth is that they have scored 17 goals in the last 6 matches in all competitions, and Rasmus Hojlund has scored in the last 5 matches.

Maybe by the end of the season, this period will feel like a false dawn, in the context of Man United’s limitations still being clearly shown. But this is the time when this club is showing revival, when coach Erik ten Hag’s team is showing motivation to overcome mistakes and begin to really take the initiative in matches. MU may still do silly things and concede unnecessary goals in matches they gain control of, but now, they are looking to fix that.

And if this is truly their moment of rebirth, the striker is probably the position that offers the most hope. Marcus Rashford, the oldest of the trio in attack (26 years old), has had a terrible decline this season, but this player’s class is still there. Alejandro Garnacho is shining despite not being really stable (which is understandable for a teenage player). In addition, this player’s versatility (can play on the right wing even though his preferred position is on the other wing) allows Rashford to roam freely in his preferred position.  

Meanwhile, Hojlund, who was in danger of being crushed by the pressure, knew how to take advantage of the opportunity with great confidence. His goal against West Ham, when he created space for himself outside the penalty area before finishing dangerously into the left corner of the goal or his close-range volley with his non-dominant foot against Aston Villa showed remarkable sharpness. Fear of the Danish player.

Speaking of the goal against Villa, Hojlund may have been lucky, but if he actually aimed between Emi Martínez’s legs (from less than a meter away it seemed possible) then it was his instinct. a goalscorer. Hojlund’s goal conversion rate (19%) is exceptional (in the context of 11% being the norm), suggesting that his failure to score at the start of the season had little to do with skill. play football by this player.

The chemistry between the Danish striker and Rashford and Garnacho seems to be very important. United have played with a front three of Garnacho, Hojlund and Rashford seven times this season and won all seven. It’s true they played together in the 4-3 defeat to Copenhagen in the Champions League – but it wasn’t just Rashford who started That match was on the right wing with Garnacho on the left wing, but he was also sent off after 42 minutes when MU was leading 2-0.

These three players have a total age of 66. All three have their own limitations, but they bring balance when playing together and can help each other improve. Ten Hag will have to find a way to restore solidity in defense without too much affecting their ability to freely attack; Remember that Rashford and Garnacho were criticized a lot for not supporting the defense. But Ratcliffe’s arrival is the start of a new chapter; The progress in attack is clearly a sign that could not be more optimistic.

This is not the dream striker of this team’s leadership, because if it were, they would not need to spend 160 million pounds on Antony and Jadon Sancho. But Rashford, Hojlund and Garnacho are the names they have and are showing encouraging effectiveness.

It’s been a long time since you could say that about something at Manchester United.

Summary of article translation: “Rashford, Højlund and Garnacho: power trio leading Manchester United revival” by Jonathan Wilson (The Guardian)