Nigel Winterburn: Man Utd will have sights set on European qualification this season

Former Arsenal defender Nigel Winterburn has told NewBettingSites.uk that he believes Manchester United will be aiming to finish in the European places this season after a disappointing 2024-25 campaign.

The ex-Gunners left-back discussed United’s expectations for the coming season ahead of their first fixture of the new campaign against Arsenal at Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon, suggesting the Red Devils will have their sights set on returning to the European stage after a dismal Premier League campaign last season.

Speaking to NewBettingSites.uk, Winterburn said: “Manchester United will be setting their sights on getting back into the European places this season. They won’t get away with playing how they did last season and finishing down the table again.

“It seems like Ruben Amorim is now able to move a few more players on and edge players who he doesn’t want out of his squad. He has made it abundantly clear which players he does and doesn’t want in his team for the upcoming season.

“He obviously wants to play a certain style of football and we’ve seen him stick to his system with three central defenders and wing-backs. It'll be interesting to see how their new signings fit into the team and how they work in the manager’s system. I’m sure the fans are looking forward to seeing that.

“They’ve made three big attacking signings in Benjamin Šeško, Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha. It will be interesting to see how they all fit into the team without leaving areas of weakness elsewhere on the pitch. As a team, they’re going to be much better going forward than they were last season, but are they going to be suspect in midfield and defence?

“There are still questions to be asked of United, but attacking-wise they’ve made good signings and that must be seen as their main strength heading into the new season.”

Baleba could cover for Bruno in midfield

With Brighton midfielder Carlos Baleba linked with a move to Old Trafford, Winterburn highlighted United’s midfield as a potential problem area in Ruben Amorim’s side and suggested that Baleba could well be the solution.

“United obviously have a great player in Bruno Fernandes in midfield, but then the question is who they play next to him,” said Winterburn. “They’ve got Kobbie Mainoo and Casemiro, but it feels like an area where they could be a little bit light.

“They’ve been linked with Carlos Baleba from Brighton and he would be a good fit. In the Premier League, you need a midfielder who can cover a lot of ground and be in the right position all the time. Bruno is very talented, but he is not going to give you a lot defensively.

“Amorim’s system with the wing-backs leaves United with only two central midfield players, one of which will most likely be Bruno. Whoever is next to him needs to be mobile enough to cover ground for him defensively.

“I’m intrigued to see how this squad adapts to Amorim’s style of play because we could even see one of the three centre-backs stepping in with the ball and acting as another midfield player.”

Amorim will still be in charge at the end of the season

Winterburn believes Amorim's squad still needs more reinforcements and is backing the Portuguese manager to be at the helm come the end of the season, but warned that pressure will begin to build on him once again if results do not go their way in the Premier League.

“Manchester United brought Ruben Amorim in last season because they believed in him,” he said. “They have now spent a significant amount of money to strengthen the squad, but it still needs a few tweaks and I don’t know whether they will be able to get everything done in this transfer window.

"It will be very hard to strengthen again in January so then really you’re looking to next summer. He’ll still be in charge at the end of the season, but he will certainly be under a lot of pressure.

“If they perform like they did in the league last season, given the money they’ve spent, then he is going to be under serious pressure.”