Rio Ferdinand has completely agreed with a controversial Manchester United demand made by Omar Berrada as Rúben Amorim heads into the 2025/26 campaign.
As Manchester United turn their attention to the 2025 summer transfer window, Rúben Amorim is also assessing how his current squad will shape up for the 2025/26 campaign.
Several players — including Alejandro Garnacho, Antony, and Marcus Rashford — have already been deemed surplus to requirements, but many others are expected to be given a clean slate heading into the new season.
The club have confirmed the signing of Matheus Cunha and remain hopeful of landing Bryan Mbeumo in the coming weeks, with Amorim eager to inject Premier League experience into his side.
United are aiming to bring in a new midfielder and striker before pre-season begins next month, while further reinforcements in defence and goal remain possible depending on outgoing transfers.
Ferdinand agrees with Berrada’s controversial demand
Once it became clear that the club had chosen to stick with Amorim despite United finishing 15th in the Premier League table last season and losing the Europa League final against Tottenham Hotspur, they then laid out their targets.
According to the Manchester Evening News, United’s management, including CEO Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox, had agreed that finishing inside the Premier League’s top six spots was an acceptable goal next campaign.
This brought on a mixed reaction from the club’s fans, with many feeling that, with the club not competing in any European competition next season and therefore having more time to train, recover, and prepare for games, United should instead view an acceptable finish as securing a spot in the Champions League.
However, former United centre-back Rio Ferdinand has agreed with Berrada’s sentiment, explaining that he believes the club should aim to finish within the top six.
“I think if you finish 15th this year, United have got to be looking to finish in at least the top eight, top six,” Ferdinand told The Mirror.
“I don’t think you should be looking outside of that. And that’s from someone who only thought about winning the league at United. So it’s a big come-down in that sense.”
United must use performances as a success barometer
While it is all well and good to judge success based on where the club finishes in the league table next season, what United must instead focus on is the performances on the pitch.
United could finish in the top three next season by playing counter-attacking football, much like they did under Erik ten Hag in 2022/23, but it would be better for United to judge Amorim’s first full season at the helm by their levels of improvement.
If Amorim can demonstrate to the board that his side is progressing and becoming a more capable Premier League team over the next 12 months, this would be a better indicator of the success of the 2025/26 season compared to simply where the side finishes in the table.
In the last decade, United have been measuring their success by comparing themselves to rivals. But, at the moment, United are nowhere near the likes of Liverpool or Manchester City, so must instead measure their successes by their own improvements, and slowly build themselves back up again before comparing themselves to any other club.
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