MANCHESTER United’s midfield has been in need of attention for years. The club that once had the likes of Roy Keane and Paul Scholes play for them have desperately lacked quality in the centre of the pitch ever since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement. Even before Ferguson left, United’s midfield was the subject of much debate.

However, the midfield unit at Old Trafford has never been weaker than it is now. This was clear in Manchester United’s dismal opening day defeat to Brighton during which Erik ten Hag’s team got their 2022/23 campaign off to the worst possible start. The problems in midfield were at the root of everything that was wrong about the performance.

Ten Hag started with a midfield pairing of Fred and Scott McTominay, but substituted both in the second half as it became clear neither could progress the ball as United required. To make matters worse, both players struggled to keep hold of possession under pressure and found themselves exposed when chasing back towards their own goal.

Of course, Manchester United fans had seen this all before from Fred and McTominay. At this point, their shortcomings are common knowledge, but ten Hag doesn’t have many other options following the departure of Paul Pogba and Nemanja Matic over the summer. By full time, United had dropped Christian Eriksen into a deeper role purely to gain some control.

United have spent so long chasing Frenkie de Jong, a player who clearly has no desire to join the Old Trafford club, that they have completely neglected their midfield in the immediate term. As soon as last season finished, it was clear Manchester United needed more than just one central operator, so why have they been so blinkered in their pursuit of de Jong?

Even if United somehow manage to persuade de Jong to join them before the summer transfer window closes, they will be short of options in the centre of the pitch. De Jong is among the best at progressing the ball through the midfield, but he can’t conduct every single attack. What’s more, he isn’t a midfield destroyer. United’s midfield unit could still be lightweight even with de Jong included.

The rebuild at Manchester United was always likely to be painful and fans shouldn’t be surprised that the process already appears to be stalling. There might be new people in charge of the day-to-day running of the club, but the same old mistakes are being repeated. Ten Hag is being set up to fail just as many of his predecessors were.

“It is a hell of a job [before us] – we have to work really hard, analyse and then move forward,” ten Hag said after the home defeat to Brighton, acknowledging the pitiful standard of the performance by Manchester United. “Today was a good start and then after that we dropped down a level in belief and we made mistakes that the opponent punished.”

Brighton won’t be the only opponent to punish Manchester United’s mistakes if they continue to make them this season. Graham Potter’s team are everything ten Hag’s United aren’t in that every player on the pitch has a strong understanding of their roles and responsibilities, but the Premier League is full of well-coached teams. If they continue on their current course, Sunday won’t be the only difficult afternoon endured by Manchester United this season.

The midfield is key to every team, but ten Hag’s approach puts particular strain on the centre of the pitch, as demonstrated by the way Ajax played under his stewardship. He needs all-rounders who can do it all. Right now, though, United have midfielders who offer very little. Nothing will change at Old Trafford until this changes.