Rashford rejuvenation, Ugarte role - The next key priorities for Erik ten Hag at Manchester United explained

Erik ten Hag insisted Manchester United would be 'fine' after their dismal defeat to Liverpool. The problem for him, is 'fine' is not good enough for a club of their stature.

The Dutchman was backed handsomely again in the summer transfer window with five major signings, yet when the football began, it quickly turned ugly.

Though there have been some glimmers of promise in the early stages of the new Premier League campaign, United haven't offered enough of an improvement and have been struggling from many of the same struggles that cost them so dearly last season as well.

United will be hoping to put things right when they face Southampton in the Premier League this weekend and here are the key issues Ten Hag still needs to solve:

Stop talking about trophies and improve performances

For all he has achieved at the club, Ten Hag is at risk of undermining his work by his incessant self-indulgence of silverware. Yes, it is true United have won the most trophies in English football behind Man City during his time at the club, but that in itself does not signify progress.

United regressed to an eighth-place finish in the Premier League last season, and Ten Hag was fortunate to keep his job after such a disappointing campaign. He said he felt 'sorry' for the journalists who still questioned his side's repetitive mistakes against Liverpool, but such sympathy won't be felt for him if the issues aren't solved.

Having been backed once again in the summer, there has to be progress made on the pitch in both performances and results. Failure to do so will result in United having no choice but to make a managerial change.

Settle on a formation

United's best football this season has come when they have played in a 4-2-2-2 formation, but the only goals they have scored have been when they used a 4-3-3 and pounced on the extra space in midfield. It has only added to their continued lack of a clear identity.

The issue for United is the 4-2-2-2 approach doesn't suit the bulk of their playing squad. Bruno Fernandes is less effective in an attacking midfield two, Rasmus Hojlund is untested as part of a strike partnership, the wingers don't get as much freedom, Kobbie Mainoo has an awkward midfield remit, Joshua Zirkzee has no obvious starting role and they are overly reliant on the injury-prone Mason Mount.

It seems like United will continue to switch between the two set-ups as the season goes on, but if they want to find consistency then they might have to settle on just one.

Get the best out of Ugarte

Manuel Ugarte is already being rather unfairly portrayed as the saviour, with plenty of pressure on the player who was deemed surplus to requirements by Paris Saint-Germain. The Uruguayan will certainly bring tenacity and energy to the United midfield, but ultimately there is a reason why PSG replaced him with Joao Neves after only a year.

For the 23-year-old to have any chance of succeeding at Old Trafford, he will have to be used properly, and it seems like he would function better as part of a midfield pairing than as a solitary defensive midfielder. There are already comparisons between Ugarte and former midfielder Ander Herrera, who himself was good at breaking up play, but perhaps a little limited when it came to his distribution and attacking threat.

Ugarte will not dictate matches in the way Rodri does for Man City, nor is he a straight replacement for Casemiro either. The uncomfortable truth is he might be better off partnered alongside Casemiro than replacing him at all.

Rejuvenate Rashford

Whether you like it or not, Marcus Rashford is still United's best winger, if not their best forward. The problem is, those days have been few and far between since Erik ten Hag's debut campaign when he reached a world-class output of 30 goals in all competitions.

When he is feeling confident and is used in his favoured left wing role, Rashford is as good as anyone else in his position, with the hopes of United this season once again likely to rely on his performances.

If they can get Rashford back to being even a 15 or 20-goal-a-season forward, it would significantly improve their attacking threat and also help ease the pressure on the other younger forwards in the squad.

Continue to refresh the squad

United took steps in the right direction with their summer business but even sporting director Dan Ashworth admitted it wasn't 'perfect', though no window ever really is.

Casemiro, Christian Eriksen, Victor Lindelof, and Antony are all still on the books and surplus to requirements, while it still feels like United lack proper depth at left-back and could do with another natural goalscorer in attack.

The immediate issues might be on the pitch, but there is still plenty of work to do off it before United can feel they have a squad capable of challenging for the top honours consistently.