After a bleak marketing campaign final season that ended with a shock triumph within the FA Cup, Erik ten Hag and Manchester United have an enormous ten months forward of them within the Premier League.

Sadly, whereas the Dutchman’s aspect have been in a position to win their opening sport towards Fulham final month, they’ve since misplaced away to Brighton & Hove Albion and, even worse than that, at residence to Liverpool.

The three-time European Champions will want their attacking gamers like Alejandro Garnacho, who loved an excellent marketing campaign final yr, and Marcus Rashford, who wasn’t fairly as efficient, firing on all cylinders from right here on out if they’ll break again into the Champions League locations come Could.

Apparently, although, a former United flop who was offered nearly a decade in the past really managed to outscore each wingers final season.

Garnacho and Rashford’s 23/24

Okay, so whereas United have been somewhat dismal within the league general final season, Garnacho really loved a comparatively profitable yr for somebody his age.

For instance, in 50 appearances, the 20-year-old winger racked up a haul of ten objectives and 5 assists, that means he averaged a objective involvement each 3.33 video games, which for a aspect with the fifteenth worst underlying numbers within the league, per Understat, is not unhealthy going.

Furthermore, whereas he has been within the aspect for a while now and has due to this fact develop into a recognisable face to the followers, he’s nicely forward of the place most attackers are at his age, as in line with analysis by The Athletic, broad gamers hit their peak at round 26 years outdated.

Now, whereas the Madrid-born dynamo can look again on final season as a yr of development, sadly, Rashford can’t. In actual fact, it was undeniably a marketing campaign by which he regressed.

In 22/23, the Manchester-born star was virtually unplayable and ended the season with a daft tally of 30 objectives and 11 assists in 56 matches, whereas final yr, he might solely handle eight objectives and 6 assists in 43 appearances.

This implies he went from averaging a objective involvement as soon as each 1.36 video games to as soon as each 3.07 video games within the area of a yr, so it isn’t arduous to see why some followers are beginning to lose their endurance with him, particularly as he has but to open his account this season.

So, it might be honest to say that between Rashford and Garnacho, it was a season of combined fortunes final yr, though each have been outperformed by a former United flop who left nearly a decade in the past.

Ángel Di María’s 23/24

Sure, the participant in query is none apart from World Cup winner Ángel Di María, who joined Louis Van Gaal’s United aspect for about £60m in August 2014, scored 4 objectives and supplied 11 assists in 32 video games, after which left the next summer time to affix Paris Saint-Germain for about £44m.

Now, whereas the Argentine icon did put up some fairly spectacular numbers for the Pink Devils, he did not fairly set the world alight as many hoped.

Furthermore, he later revealed that a number of components, together with a break-in and disagreements with Van Gaal, meant he needed to depart, and contemplating he not too long ago labelled the Dutchman because the “worst supervisor” he is ever performed for, we think about that was the primary issue.

The Rosario-born dynamo spent the subsequent seven seasons taking part in in Paris, the place he picked up 5 league titles, earlier than transferring to Juventus for the 22/23 marketing campaign, by which he managed a return of eight objectives and 7 assists – oh, and he additionally received the World Cup that December.

In the summertime of 2023, he made what’s more likely to be his closing switch and rejoined his first membership, Benfica, the place he has since been tearing it up.

Final season, the “excellent” winger, as expertise scout Jacek Kulig described him, scored 17 objectives and supplied 15 assists in 48 matches, that means he averaged a objective involvement as soon as each 1.5 video games for the Portuguese giants, thus outscoring the 2 United wingers.

Nonetheless, the caveat right here is that whereas Liga Nos is stronger than most individuals give it credit score for, the extent of competitors remains to be decrease than that of the Premier League, and whereas he is had an excellent profession since leaving Previous Trafford, promoting him was the suitable factor to do for all events concerned.