Manchester United were crying out loud for a new centre midfielder from last season as it was one of the places where the team faced most of the difficulties other than their defense. They got veteran German Bastian Schweinsteiger and Morgan Schneiderlin this year to strengthen their midfield woes.
 |
| Morgan Schneiderlin celebrates his goal on his debut with Man Utd teammates. |
The Red Devils had Michael Carrick in the holding position last season but because of his frequent injuries Van Gaal had to bring in someone else or change the formation which was turning to be a big problem for them. Dutch signing Daley Blind was used by the United boss in Carrick’s absence but he too got sidelined for a few important games that included big rivals such as Chelsea and Everton. This was in the final weeks of last season and losing 2 players of that position was a big loss to them. United lost both the games and were on the brink of losing Champions League football yet again. Van Gaal had learnt that this problem had to be dealt as soon as possible and the club’s executive Ed Woodward had helped him out there by signing Morgan Schneiderlin from fellow league opponents Southampton.
United had piped London rivals Arsenal to sign the Frenchman for a reported fee of 24 million pounds. His signing was announced immediately after the official presentation of the club’s 1st German buy, Bastian Schweinsteiger from Bavarian side Bayern Munich. Carrick, Herrera and Blind were now accompanies by these 2 new men. Schneiderlin had started for United in their 1st pre-season game against CA America in Seattle on their 2015 tour. Schneiderlin was the man of the moment as he scored the only goal of the game in the 5th minute as he headed home from a Juan Mata cross. In a post match statement he said “I’m very happy to get the goal in my 1st game. It was a great cross from Mata”.
Having scored the winner on his debut was something that not only but also fans had loved. Other than the goal he had put up a great show for the fans which got him a lot of appreciation. His game chemistry with Carrick, whose boots he’s brought in to fill was definitely a treat to watch for the United fans.
He might have not played the full game but his stint in the first 45 minutes had won the hearts of millions of United fans and they knew that this is man they needed the most. Hopefully he’ll only keep getting better in the days to come and United’s problem of a consistent holding midfielder can be solved.
