What Does the Future Hold for Marouane Fellaini at Manchester United?
There were plenty of times during the summer transfer window where it seemed Marouane Fellaini would be leaving Manchester United. However, with a move to Napoli reportedly scuppered by an ankle injury, per Ian Herbert of The Independent, the former Everton man is still on the books at United.
He has been told, per Rob Dawson of the Manchester Evening News, that he will have to fight for his place.
"Van Gaal has told me that there is a lot of competition. Now it is up to me to prove myself.
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There are two routes for him to do so. The first is to carve out a position which he can make his own. Often used as a forward at Everton, the competition ahead of Fellaini in this area at United is in a different league—in terms of proven quality—to the Belgian.
In midfield, to borrow an expression from U.S. sports, United’s bench is not as deep. There is more chance of Fellaini proving his worth there, although his performances in a red shirt so far have done little to suggest he will make a guaranteed first-team place his own.
The more likely route for Fellaini is to become comfortable with the role of a utility player, not the best option in any role but useful squad filler. With Ander Herrera, Daley Blind and Angel Di Maria all able to cover multiple positions, Fellaini may well be called upon to deputise.
The Belgian has found his early going at United difficult. His signing at the end of last year’s summer transfer window felt like an act of desperation for a club that had set its sights a lot higher.
The splashy, high-profile arrivals of this summer stand in stark contrast to Fellaini’s acquisition.
He has also suffered by association. The fears of fans who were concerned about David Moyes’ inexperience at the elite level of football—and the style of play he would implement at United—were hardly assuaged by bringing in a player whose best performances against the Red Devils had come when he was used as a kind of human battering ram.
It is hardly Fellaini’s fault that he was unable to single-handedly turn around the fortunes of United’s midfield, though. The problems there were too serious to be fixed by him alone.
He did, in fact, put in some quietly effective performances against some of the league’s lower-ranked teams—West Bromwich Albion away springs to mind.
However, his performance against Bayern Munich at Old Trafford in the quarter finals of the Champions League left him looking horribly outmatched, and this was not unusual for his displays in the bigger games.
It is easy to assume this means that he is not cut out for the very top level of football. That may, in fact, turn out to be the case. However, given that it appears the timing of his injury has extended his time at the club, perhaps Louis van Gaal can find a way to make the Belgian look more like a "United" player.
His settling-in process at United was disrupted by injury, and perhaps with a run of fitness, and a manager who will not be perceived as some kind of personal benefactor, Fellaini will be able to repair his reputation amongst United fans.
That still seems a long-shot, and the most likely outcome surely remains that Fellaini will leave the club sooner rather than later—perhaps as soon as January.
However, the potential does remain for him to confound his detractors. Van Gaal is a manager famous for improving the performances of his players over time.
If Fellaini becomes the beneficiary of the Van Gaal magic, then it may turn out that the future holds a place for him in United's ranks after all.
