That Manchester United center back Leny Yoro felt empowered to target not only winning the Premier League but prevailing in each and every game is a statement of intent in and of itself. Yet, when viewed in the wider context of every level of the club sharing the same belief, it begs the question of whether they have a point.
Despite failing to entertain a single title race, let alone actually winning the thing, in the 13 years since Sir Alex Ferguson retired, United’s hopes have scarcely been higher heading into the 2026–27 campaign. The transformation Michael Carrick inspired last term offers some justification for these ambitions.
A second-half surge through the season led United to the heady heights of third place, with fanciful talk of even winning the title in 2025–26 briefly entertained. With Carrick at the helm for the full campaign, United haven’t written off any goals.
“The mood is really good,” Yoro told assembled media during the club’s preseason tour. “We work really hard, and outside the pitch, we have a good vibe, good mood. So the target this season is to win every game, to be honest. For the team to be the best, for myself to do good games every time, to win trophies, and to be at the top.”
Yoro would not be the first 20-year-old to get carried away by a few months of promising results, but his faith is shared across every hierarchy of the club.
‘The Magic of Man Utd’ Is Back
Carrick has made avoiding declarations of intent an art form during his tenure. Yet, even the defiantly dour manager opened himself up to the allure of greater glory. “From the moment that I arrived here 20 years ago, I felt the magic of Manchester United,” the former midfielder gushed.
“Carrying the responsibility of leading our special football club fills me with immense pride. Throughout the past five months, this group of players have shown they can reach the standards of resilience, togetherness and determination that we demand here.
“Now it’s time to move forward together again, with ambition and a clear sense of purpose. Manchester United and our incredible supporters deserve to be challenging for the biggest honors again.”
For Mason Mount, those biggest honors felt entirely attainable. Last April, the injury-riddled midfielder declared: “I have a goal of winning the Premier League. Obviously I’ve won the Champions League already, but can we [win the league?] Yes, I think we can as a group.
“We have to have that kind of mentality. It may seem a little bit far away, but you have to have that mentality to really push yourself as a group.”
Last season, Bruno Fernandes shared a similar stance. “I will be happy when I win the Premier League,” he mused. “The point to come to England, to such a huge club, was to win the Premier League and I think we have the chance to do it.”
Manchester United chief executive Omar Berrada has set the very public goal of reclaiming Premier League glory before the club’s 150th anniversary in 2028. After watching Carrick blossom across the second half of 2025–26, he gleefully warned: “Ideally, we do it next season, and if not, then the following season. I think we’re in a good place.”
Why Man Utd Have to Be Considered a Premier League Title Contender
Manchester United debut their 2026/27 adidas away kit. pic.twitter.com/SodiHqic4Y
— Sports Illustrated FC (@SI_FootballClub) July 24, 2026
It’s always dangerous to take snapshots of Premier League tables. The beauty of a league season is the endurance of maintaining that level across 38 games in 10 months against 19 different opponents. Liverpool were top as late as last October.
However, it’s hard to ignore the simple fact that since Carrick returned to the Old Trafford dugout in January, United collected more points and scored more goals than anyone else in the division. That spell stretched across 17 games, almost half a season, and included daunting tests against the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool.
Even taking into account Ruben Amorim’s doomed experiment in destructive dogmatism, United boasted one of the most potent attacks in the division.
Man Utd Boast a Potent Attack
| 2025–26 Stats | Man Utd | Premier League Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Open-Play Goals | 46 | 2nd |
| Open-Play xG | 45.81 | 4th |
| Open-Play Shots | 439 | 3rd |
| Set-Piece Goals | 19 | T-2nd |
| Set-Piece xG | 14.95 | 8th |
| Set-Piece Shots | 151 | 8th |
Stats via Opta.
That is what spending north of $270 million on three new forwards will get you. Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Šeško all enjoyed strong debut seasons, with the latter pair getting better as the campaign wore on. That trio remains in tact and is bolstered by the likes of Amad Diallo, Patrick Dorgu, Shea Lacey and perhaps even the 15-year-old JJ Gabriel.
Not only were United more productive in open play than eventual champions Arsenal, but they also posted impressive efficiency from set pieces without becoming over-reliant on this route to goal. Bruno Fernandes enjoying the best form of his career also helped but consistency from the Portuguese captain has been one of the few things United needn’t worry about.
Should Fernandes remain, the entire attacking quartet would be untouched, offering that most precious of commodities in the modern Premier League: continuity. Carrick already stands as the 10th longest serving manager in the division. There will be nine new head coaches to start the 2026–27 campaign—the most in the competition’s history—while all of Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool have new figures in the dugout.
Why Doubts Should Remain
As impressive as Manchester United have been under Carrick, there’s a strong argument to be made that little of what went before will bear any resemblance to the challenge he now faces.
Thanks to the numerous failures of his predecessors, Carrick had the luxury of only focusing on Premier League matches. While United’s rivals for next season’s title were desperately cycling through their large squads to deal with fixture congestion, the Red Devils went numerous weeks without a single game.
That won’t be the case this season as Champions League soccer returns to Old Trafford. It remains to be seen if United have the roster to cope with these added demands of at least eight more games at the highest level and, more pertinently, whether Carrick has the expertise to know when and who to rotate.
Quite what United’s first-choice rearguard looks like remains a point of consideration, especially if Lisandro Martínez’s fitness record fails to improve, while the configuration of a Casemiro-less midfield still has to be settled upon. No side conceded more goals from fast breaks last season than United: toughening up that soft center will be key.
José Mourinho welcomed Carrick’s decision to join his coaching staff in 2018 with two gifts; a whistle and some headache tablets. There’s been little need for the latter during his current stint at United thus far, but they could come in handy while trying to match the club’s spiraling ambitions.
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