Michael Carrick’s arrival at Manchester United in January sparked a dramatic turnaround, lifting the club from a seventh‑place standing to third and securing a coveted Champions League spot. His early success, however, now gives way to a new set of obstacles as United embarks on a season that promises a relentless schedule of three matches a week. The pressing question is whether the squad can cope with such intensity and whether the massive rebuilding effort has overlooked a crucial component of the team.
Last season United’s fixture list was unusually light. With no European commitments and early eliminations from both the Carabao Cup (by Grimsby Town) and the FA Cup (by Brighton), the Red Devils managed just 40 competitive games across all tournaments. This was the joint‑fewest appearances of any Premier League side and marked the lowest seasonal total for United since the 1913‑14 campaign.
The reduced workload allowed Carrick to keep his core players fresh while rival clubs were forced to rotate more frequently. In fact, between his appointment and the end of the league season, only five other teams made fewer changes to their starting line‑ups than United. That level of consistency is unlikely to be replicated this term. The upcoming Champions League clash against Sabah on Thursday kicks off a series of eight guaranteed European fixtures, and United could end up contesting as many as 67 matches in all competitions.
Carrick has spoken positively about the upcoming grind, noting that the season’s progression will see less training time but greater involvement for the squad. He also highlighted that most of his players are now accustomed to the demands of continental football, a stark contrast to the previous year when United were absent from Europe. Nevertheless, the return to European competition will test the depth and quality of the rebuilt roster. The last time United juggled a full European program, in the 2024‑25 season, they finished a disappointing 15th in the league.
This time around, the club has invested heavily: a modest £163 million was spent on new signings during the summer window, but the total outlay since 2022 exceeds £1 billion, making United the Premier League’s biggest net spender over that period with a net spend of £769.5 million. A closer look at the allocation of those funds reveals a pronounced imbalance. The summer acquisitions were almost entirely midfield‑focused, with Carlos Baleba, Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans arriving as headline signings. By contrast, a year earlier the emphasis was on attacking talent, bringing in Benjamin Sesko, Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha.
Defensive reinforcements have been noticeably scarce. Only 19 percent of the total £1 billion investment since 2022 has been directed toward defenders – the third‑lowest share among Premier League clubs in the same timeframe, surpassed only by Liverpool and Everton, and far below the 42 percent allocated to forwards.
The consequence is a squad that, while stronger in certain areas, still lacks depth and quality elsewhere. United’s forwards rank as the third‑most valuable among the league’s traditional big six, yet their midfielders and defenders sit at the bottom of the valuation chart.
Even within the attack, there are lingering doubts: the team boasts a plethora of supporting forwards such as Mbeumo, Cunha and Amad Diallo, but relies on a single out‑and‑out striker, Benjamin Sesko, and still misses a genuine creative alternative to Bruno Fernandes. Another striking observation is the limited turnover despite the massive spending. The back four that started the 2‑2 draw with Everton – Luke Shaw, Lisandro Martínez, Harry Maguire and Diogo Dalot – is identical to the lineup fielded in Erik ten Hag’s first match in May 2022.
Marcus Rashford’s return to the left of Fernandes means six starters remained unchanged from the start of the 2022‑23 campaign to the opening game of the new season. United’s retention rate of 54.5 percent from the first match of 2022/23 to the latest fixture is the highest in the league, with Arsenal trailing at 36.4 percent.
Continuity can be a virtue, as demonstrated by Arsenal’s retained core of Gabriel, Ben White, Martin Ødegaard and Bukayo Saka, all of whom played pivotal roles in the Gunners’ title triumph. By contrast, many of United’s unchanged starters are more often associated with underperformance than with success.
This raises concerns for Carrick as he prepares to navigate a far busier calendar, especially given the limited defensive options that inspire confidence. In summary, Manchester United’s £1 billion rebuilding project has delivered notable progress, but the upcoming season will be its sternest examination yet. The club must manage a congested fixture list, address the defensive shortfall, and inject fresh competition into a largely static starting eleven.
How Carrick balances these challenges will determine whether United can transform their substantial investment into sustained success on both domestic and European fronts.