Mauricio Pochettino has begun a 2-and-a-half-year contract at Man United with the task of reviving a side that was winless in 8 consecutive Premier League matches and sitting 18th in the table.
The Argentine’s first priority is to improve results after the club’s worst start to a season, with the players now expected to respond under their new manager.
Man United supporter and TikTok commentator Callum Fowler has assessed all 23 members of the first-team squad, placing them in five categories: elite, promising, average, last chance and find a new club.
No-one reaches elite level
Fowler decided that no player deserved a place in the “elite” group, despite the presence of last season’s PFA Player of the Year, Bruno Fernandes.
“‘Elite’ tier? Give me a break,” he said. “There’s nobody in that team who comes anywhere near that level. They’re miles off.”
Cunha, Sesko and Tielemans offer hope
Matheus Cunha, Benjamin Sesko and Youri Tielemans were placed in the “promising” category.
Cunha has scored only 1 Premier League goal this season, although his winner in Man United’s remarkable Champions League comeback against Roma was one of the campaign’s highlights. Tielemans has been a regular starter since his £35M summer move, despite criticism of his performances.
Sesko, who has been injured since September, was also praised by Fowler. The striker finished as Man United’s joint-top scorer last season.
“I think Sesko is one of Man United’s best players, and I mean that seriously,” Fowler said.
“Would I still describe him as lightning-fast and exceptional? Obviously not, but that’s where Man United are these days!”
He added: “I think Benjamin Sesko, Youri Tielemans and especially Matheus Cunha have been unlucky because they’ve spent most of their time playing alongside a bunch of stakes. This team isn’t that bad.”
“We all saw what Cunha did at Wolves, and he still looks in good enough form to reproduce those performances here. It was only 6 months ago that we saw what Tielemans could do at Aston Villa.”
“When Benjamin Sesko has played, I think he’s looked pretty good too, but he’s had virtually no support from the team.”
Nineteen-year-old Shea Lacey was also regarded as a promising player after several strong substitute appearances.
Five judged average
Fowler listed 5 players as neither impressive nor disappointing. Baleba, signed for £70M in the summer, was described as a difficult acquisition to understand after a poor season at Brighton, although injuries affected the beginning of his Man United career.
“Honestly, I really don’t know why they bought him in the 1st place,” Fowler said. “He was absolutely terrible at Brighton last year. If they signed him based on his performances last year, or even the year before, the move made no sense.”
Ayden Heaven was labelled “ordinary”, with Fowler suggesting a loan abroad could help him regain confidence.
“He might actually look quite good there. It could give him some confidence, and when he comes back, he’ll be a different player,” he said.
“He’s been playing too much. He clearly isn’t ready yet, and that’s terrible for his mental well-being.”
“He’s in a terrible environment. Send him to a team that wins most of its games.”
Andrey Santos, Leny Yoro and Bryan Mbeumo were the other players in the group. Mbeumo scored 11 league goals last season.
Three facing a final opportunity
Amad Diallo, Marcus Rashford and Senne Lammens were placed in the “last chance” category.
Rashford has failed to score or provide an assist in 8 appearances since his proposed move to Barcelona collapsed.
“Look at the quality of Man United’s squad. It’s never been this badabsolutely dreadful,” Fowler said.
“So while Marcus Rashford may no longer be good enough to stay at Man United, the club have far bigger problems to address right now. Rashford is still a decent player, at least.”
Fowler said Lammens had been undermined by errors and poor defending in front of him.
“Think about it: any decent goalkeeper would struggle with that shambles in front of him, wouldn’t he? So this is something of a last chance for him, but I don’t blame him entirely for the team conceding so many goals.”
Of Diallo, he added: “I believe his time is about to over, at least he worked very hard. For his performance on the pitch, he is still not excellent enough.”
Captain Fernandes among those told to leave
Fowler believes at least 11 players from the 23-man squad should find new clubs, beginning with captain Bruno Fernandes.
Fernandes has not matched his record-breaking performances from last season and rejected Man United’s 2nd contract offer.
“This guy has no brain. He runs around like a headless chicken 24 hours a day,” Fowler said.
“After the kind of performances he delivered last season, when the discussion was more about Bruno Fernandes than Man United and he also broke the assist record, there was really little left for Bruno Fernandes to achieve at Man United.”
“He won’t set any more records for himself. He’ll never win another trophy at this club, either.”
Fowler concluded: “He’s letting the team down. He never looks up. The whole game was Bruno Fernandes’s personal show. This guy is absolutely rubbish, man. Go to another club. He’s useless.”
Diogo Dalot was also heavily criticised.
“Diogo Dalot is one of the worst players I’ve ever seen, yet he continues to wear the Man United shirt,” Fowler said.
He was similarly critical of Matthijs De Ligt and Lisandro Martinez.
“Could Matthijs De Ligt get a chance at Brighton? Absolutely not,” he said. “This guy is rubbish. By the standards of a halfway decent Premier League club, he should be playing for Sevilla or somewhere like that. He’s simply not good enough to play for a club like this.”
“As for Martinez,” he added, “I don’t care if people say he might be a decent player for Argentina. I really can’t stand the guy. I think he’s awful.”
Fowler also urged Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw and Noussair Mazraoui to leave, saying: “I’m talking about Man United. This club needs a complete clean-out from top to bottom.”
“He’s no longer good enough to play for Man United. He really isn’t. Let’s be honest about it.”
