2024 has been quite a year for Manchester United: huge highs, desperate lows and everything else in between.
In February the consent was officially ratified by Sir Jim Ratcliffe. They then scored a sensational extra-time FA Cup win over Liverpool in March before lifting the trophy in May – the same month they finished a truly disappointing eighth place in the Premier League.
Erik ten Hag successfully kept his job and even received a new contract as a sign of his trust. There were also several new hires at senior management level and a promising summer transfer window.
But the start to 2024/25 was bad. Ten Hag was fired, Ruben Amorim was hired and sporting director Dan Ashworth only lasted five months in office. This is not a quick fix and it will most likely take time to build a sustainable sports operation with a new look.
Off the pitch, there are ongoing plans to build a brand new Old Trafford that will be the centerpiece of a major urban regeneration, and yet the club is also keenly feeling the financial squeeze that has led to spending cuts and major staff redundancies.
In teams struggling to reach their potential, the goalkeeper often stands out. André Onana may have started off with a wobble in the fall of 2023, but by the time 2024 began, it was literally saving the day on a regular basis.
Footballers will always make mistakes and as a goalkeeper you can’t hide from them. Unfortunately for Onana, a few crept back in towards the end of the calendar year, but that doesn’t detract from his overall contributions over the entire 12 months.
United almost began the Amorim era with a shock defeat to Ipswich Town, but Onana made a stunning save, something the Portuguese coach remembered when he came in for his goalkeeper after a faux pas against Nottingham Forest two weeks later.
“He has saved us many times so we have to find a way to turn things around and score two goals to help our goalkeeper like he saved us in Ipswich for example,” Amorim said.
For Amad DialloThe year 2024 was the turning point of his career at Manchester United. The Ivorian winger has been with the club for three-and-a-half years but has only had a lasting chance in recent months – even after his dramatic extra-time winner in that triumphant FA Cup tie against Liverpool.
Despite the early signs of what Amad was capable of, Ten Hag never really seemed interested in him. A start and impressive performance in the Community Shield in August was followed by a gradual decline to the periphery – ostensibly due to an obvious loyalty and shared history with Antony.
Redemption was under the interim management of Ruud van Nistelrooy and remained in place until the end of 2024. In November and December, Amad scored ten goals and assisted in a run of nine appearances in all competitions. As a winger, his game is not littered with tricks and flicks, but what is simpler and more direct is often more effective.
United are a worse team though Kobbie Mainoo is not on the pitch, which shows the impact the 19-year-old from Stockport has had since graduating from the academy. This isn’t just felt at club level, as there is a strong argument that he also became England’s most important player heading into the Euro 2024 final.
Similar to Amad, simple well done is better than complicated badly done. This has made Mainoo a midfield fulcrum that United would soon build a project around in an ideal world.
For such a young player with limited professional experience, maturity on and off the pitch is usually the trait most associated with him, as is humility and a grounded nature.
Rasmus Hojlund has carried a lot of pressure and expectations on his shoulders since joining United in the summer of 2023. The young Dane was hardly known at the time, which made the £72m deal for him from Atalanta all the more surprising.
He also arrived with a back injury and needed time to find his feet, although life in the Champions League initially became easier for him. But Hojlund started 2024 with outstanding goalscoring form in the Premier League, scoring in six straight games.
An injury setback interrupted his run and it’s been a bit of a hitch since then, although there’s clearly potential in a bulldozing centre-forward who carries himself in the right way.
In 2024, there were 17 goals in 42 appearances across all competitions, which is certainly a respectable performance given the circumstances, even if it wasn’t outstanding.
Leny Yoro was apparently tied to Real Madrid. It made sense. Here was a teenage talent who had already been compared to Raphael Varane, playing in north-east France – just like Varane.
Madrid famously beat United to the signing of 18-year-old Varane in 2011 and ended up signing a shadow of the French centre-back a decade later. But this time the roles were reversed.
Yoro is considered a defensive talent of a generation, having joined Lille’s first team at the age of 16. While Madrid hesitated and clung to the hope of being able to sign the youngster as a free agent in 2025, United went all out to secure a package worth £59m to sign him straight away.
A pre-season injury means fans still won’t be able to see Yoro on a regular basis, but what he represents is the long-term potential to be world-class while also being a player for the moment.
No one expected United to go to Wembley and beat Manchester City in the FA Cup final.
Under Ten Hag, the eighth-place team had just recorded its worst ever Premier League result and was in danger of missing out on European football, while City had just won an unprecedented fourth consecutive league title and was on the way to a second domestic double League was looking out.
It was not expected that Alejandro Garnacho would give United a first-half lead, much less that Kobbie Mainoo would provide daylight nine minutes later. City did manage to score in the end, but it was a performance from United that simply couldn’t match the previous nine months.
The win meant qualification for the Europa League and it was even nicer to play against the “noisy neighbors” who have won everything in the last decade.
Even though it’s only talked about in professional sports, the vast majority of football teams don’t win trophies. In this regard, United fans have been spoiled for years, but even the club’s supposed ‘Banter Era’ was still far more successful than most.