Fergie said Man Utd flop would reach Neville’s level but he left for £2.5m

Manchester United are unbeaten in four Premier League matches. Since Ruben Amorim last tasted defeat, Anfield has been conquered, and there were plenty of goals during this thrilling win over Brighton at Old Trafford.

Here were the baby’s first steps on a long, arduous journey into the future, and with that exciting thought dancing in the back of fans’ minds, we were inevitably drawn back to the past.

Because it has been a very long time since the Red Devils have enjoyed consistency at the top of the table, fighting year after year for the biggest silverware. Sir Alex Ferguson did not celebrate the Premier League or Champions League title from the stands.

If Amorim hopes to lead United to that elusive glory, he will need more than just a string of positive results in his favor. He will need to reintroduce the Fergie feel into the club’s DNA.

Strangely enough, there are signs of that happening, with a number of United’s stars showing elements of that bygone era in recent weeks.

Manchester United stars like Fergie

Positionally, Amad Diallo fancies himself worthy of a place in one of Ferguson’s squads for once. After all, the Ivory Coast international has developed a penchant for scoring late goals.

In fact, all of Imad’s 10 Premier League goals came in the second half.

However, he is not alone in this regard. The frontline has been a place of contention at the Theater of Dreams in recent years, especially since Amorim arrived and ousted the likes of Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho and Jadon Sancho.

Matheus Cunha is looking at a higher level, and although the Brazilian has yet to find his Midas touch in front of goal, his quality is undeniable, with writer Wayne Burton claiming that he has “the potential to be a perennial player”, so talented that he may be “our best player since Fergie’s retirement”.

High praise, but undoubtedly wears the ring of truth. This all means that there are promising signs at Old Trafford. Brian Mbeumo is a star, and given that he singled out Cristiano Ronaldo as one of his biggest influences, you can see him succeeding in the long term. The Cameroonian plays with the same aggressive intensity that CR7 once did when he cut his teeth under Fergie’s wing.

United still need to make further improvements though, and the current struggles of wing-back Diogo Dalot underscore the need for fresh blood on the wings to help Amorim achieve his lofty ambitions.

Once upon a time, Gary Neville dominated an elite team; The retired Three Lions star is underrated these days and is one of the best defenders of his generation.

Dalot, 26, does not look like he will reach that level after arriving from Porto as a teenager with such promise.

But he’s not the only one. This is a recurring problem, and one reminiscent of the time when Sir Alex felt he had the next version of Neville, but this player failed to get going.

Fergie is a flop who has been described as the next Neville

Fergie’s era at Manchester United has been defined by meteoric rises. On the transfer front, the Red Devils have been dominant within English football, but some potential stars have fallen by the wayside.

One of them would be Rafael da Silva, who spent seven seasons at Old Trafford after graduating from Carrington, but perhaps failed to reach the potential his coach saw in him.

There was a time when Rafael was seen as having the potential to become a star. He and his twin brother Fabio were brought in from Brazilian club Fluminense in February 2007, and he made 170 appearances in all competitions, scoring five goals and providing 14 assists.

Rafael’s time at the club cannot be described as a failure, but he may have been more of a bit player than an effective cog in the machine.

He may be a three-time Premier League champion, but Ferguson believes he is destined for greatness. “I think Rafael will eventually be compared to Gary Neville,” the retired manager said in 2012.

This was not the case in the end. Rafael’s departure ended when he was under the management of Louis van Gaal, at odds with the Dutch manager, and several controversial career events beforehand, coupled with injuries, left his former manager’s predictions incorrect.

There is no doubt that he is remembered fondly, with some supporters even considering him a cult hero, but Rafael was so talented, there was really an opportunity to fill the void left by Neville.

It is a gritty, tenacious attitude, coupled with a burning desire to achieve things and excite the fans, that instantly attracted Manchester fans, and is perhaps why we now look back with an air of wistfulness on Rafael’s failed end at the club, as he left for French club Lyon in 2015 for a modest fee of £2.5m.

Anyway, it’s ludicrous to say that his strong and dynamic profile would be a perfect fit for the current Amorim-led regime, but that only underscores the need for a Neville-like figure to ensure this new chapter at the club continues to move forward after this endless turmoil.

Because unfortunately, it looks as if Dalot has fallen down a similar path, with creator Liam Canning recently saying that the Portugal international has “become a concern in the long term”, given that he “doesn’t seem to fit the role of wing-back”.

Neville may be modest about his ability as a Premier League footballer, but it will take knocking him off the pedestal all the time.