Manchester United Season Preview: Weak defence could be Red Devils undoing

Can LVG inspire Man Utd back to where many feel they belong?

Will Louis van Gaal show that last season's incompetence was just a one-off? Lewis Jones has his say and recommends a couple of bets to attack....

Last season

Ask any Manchester United fan and they will tell you that they have no recollection of their club's 2013/2014 campaign.

Ask any fan of any other football club and they will give you a detailed description of just how badly things turned out under the guidance of David Moyes.

United ended up failing to qualify for any European competition for the first time in more than 20 years by finishing seventh with Moyes getting the boot just 10 months into his new role. In that period the Red Devils completely lost their identity and were a shadow of the side that had secured a record 20th league title just a few months earlier.

Now Louis Van Gaal has been given the reins and has the job of rebuilding a national treasure.

Ins and Outs

Following a season of tactical horror shows and players looking around shrugging their shoulders, Van Gaal has got to work quickly to install a clear method a play into his new side.

Throughout pre-season he has employed a fluid 3-5-2 formation which allows a front three of Juan Mata, Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie to work in tandem in the attacking third.

Explosive full-back Luke Shaw was Van Gaal's first signing and the 27 million man looks perfectly suited to playing in an all-action wingback role, despite the former Netherlands boss questioning his fitness on a recent tour to America.

The other major signing of pre-season has been Ander Herrera, who is regarded as the heir to the Xavi and Andres Iniesta crown in the Spanish midfield engine room. He cost the club a bulky 29m but has fitted in well within the group judging by his performances in pre-season. There will be fewer players with a higher passing completion average than him in the Premier League this season.

Van Gaal will be working hard to secure a couple more big-name signatures before the window slams shut as finding a replacement for Nemanja Vidic, who has joined Inter Milan, will be crucial if United are going to improve on a defence that conceded more goals at home than the likes of Stoke, Hull and even relegated Norwich City last season.

Rio Ferdinand was allowed to leave to join QPR while Patrice Evra moved to Juventus and Ryan Giggs officially retired to take up a coaching role under Van Gaal.

The Manager

"I am what I am. Confident, arrogant, dominant, honest, industrious and innovative."

Remind you of a certain legendary Scotsman? It's easy to see the similarities between Van Gaal and Sir Alex Ferguson at this stage.

On the face of it, the big Dutchman seems to possess the right characteristics to succeed in this high-profile role. Moyes never came across as an inspirational figure at his time at Old Trafford and kept up his guard when dealing with the press. Van Gaal on the other hand speaks from the heart and is experienced enough to deal with tough questioning from journalists and players that have the tendency to spit the dummy out.

Expectations

Unofficially, the Manchester United board have set Van Gaal an ultimatum of a top-four finish, if various newspaper reports are to be believed. A failure to make Champions League football again could be catastrophic financially for the club.

Best Bet

Despite finishing 22 points behind Manchester City last season, United are third favourites to win the Premier League at 5.79/2 (Liverpool are almost twice that price).

If Van Persie and Rooney can get rolling from an early stage than that price may have some legs, but defensively a back three of consisting of Phil Jones, Chris Smalling and Jonny Evans don't scream out defensive soundness to me.

That's the reason I'm more than happy to lay the Red Devils for a top-3 finish at 1.9420/21.

Value Bet 

United have been given a favourable fixture list start to the season with Swansea, Sunderland, Burnley, QPR, Leicester and West Ham lying in wait. Van Gaal likes to take no prisoners and goals could be flying in from all angles in the opening few weeks of the season.

With that in mind, the 4.57/2 for United to be the league's top scoring team looks a tradable option.