Within the context of the last 30 years of English football, Manchester United have been widely recognised as a juggernaut – and rightfully so. However, the majority of that stems from their time under the tutelage of Sir Alex Ferguson.
During his time in charge of the Red Devils, Ferguson was able to lift the Premier League trophy on 13 separate occasions. That level of dominance can only lead to United being described as a dynasty and beyond that, one of the most prestigious dynasties in the history of sport.
Since he departed in 2013, Manchester United have won the FA Cup twice, the League Cup twice, the Community Shield twice and the Europa League once. For the majority of clubs, that would be seen as a pretty solid haul. Alas, as the joke on social media goes, this is Manchester United we’re talking about.
Why United need the Premier League back at Old Trafford
For all of their managerial changes and high-profile signings, it’s still been a long time since United were seriously challenging for the title until the very end of the campaign. Even in the present day, if you were to use bet365 to place money on them winning the big one in the 2025/26 season, you wouldn’t feel particularly confident.
The problem here is stability. Ruben Amorim arrived at the club last year and now serves as their 10th manager in charge since Fergie rode off into the sunset. For whatever reason, the foundations within the club simply do not allow for them to feasibly challenge for the top prize in the English game.
In the wake of a terrible run of form, they currently reside comfortably in the bottom half of the table, with their position indicating that relegation looks more likely than a run for the top six.
We’d argue that even if they were to summon up the courage to mount another cup run, that would simply mark a temporary fix for a much, much larger problem.
Amongst both fans and ownership there is a distinct lack of patience. Amorim himself has said that this is a project that’ll take years to work effectively and yet, year after year, the same cruel realities of competing at the elite level continue to harm this once magnificent football club.
Whether it be due to the greed associated with the new owners or a squad that focuses more on star names than being a cohesive unit, there isn’t a scenario in which they can be viewed as a legitimate threat to the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City.
Yes, pressure can be attributed to some of the strain given the overwhelming expectations many supporters have, but their lack of consistency is startling. They’ll approach a game against City as if their entire season is on the line, then they’ll fall flat in horrific fashion against teams such as Bournemouth and Crystal Palace.
The bottom line is this: any domestic cup triumph, at this point, will be met with a small window for celebration and a dream that they’re ready to produce that kind of form in the league. Unfortunately, that isn’t how it works.
You can’t rely on favourable cup draws and one-off moments of magic forever. Until this club figures out how to stretch that success over a 38-game period, the scrutiny will continue to be at an all-time high.
