Luke Shaw has been around for long enough to easily forget that he’s still only 21. He is now in his third year with the Red Devils, but has largely failed to establish himself as Jose Mourinho's first-choice left-back.
That is, until now perhaps. On Saturday, Shaw started a Premier League match for the first time since October 29 in Manchester United's 1-1 draw against Bournemouth – in part due to a groin injury sustained shortly after, but after that because Mourinho simply didn't pick him. At times it's been downright odd – and sometimes fraught.
The England international’s struggles have been an unfortunate product of the situation into which he was thrown; Shaw was under pressure after signing from Southampton for £30m in 2014 – a fee which made him the world’s most expensive teenager at the time (he was eclipsed by team-mate Anthony Martial a year later). That hasn’t really eased since.
Louis van Gaal deemed him “not very fit” soon after his arrival. He fought back to make 20 appearances in 2014/15 whilst continuing to work on his fitness. Shaw's second season began with more promise; he started every league game until that fateful Champions League trip to PSV in November, when he suffered a double leg break, ruling him out for the remainder of the campaign.
False start
All signs pointed to a successful union between player and manager, especially as Mourinho had courted Shaw while he was Chelsea boss
Until Saturday, a return to fitness hadn't brought a return to Mourinho's squad on a regular basis, let alone the starting XI: Shaw has still only started seven Premier League games this term, with Mourinho preferring square pegs for round holes in the form of Daley Blind and Matteo Darmian. The question now is: has he really turned a corner?
Coming back from a double leg fracture was always going to be difficult, and questions continue to be asked about whether Shaw has lost his explosive style and attacking threat in the final third.
Fitness issues can be traced back to his Southampton days, with Nigel Adkins and former England boss Roy Hodgson having raised the issue long before Mourinho or Van Gaal did. Mauricio Pochettino suggested that he needed time to mature psychologically – mentally and tactically.
Mourinho was clearly impressed by Shaw in pre-season, though: after an untroubled performance against Wigan, the Portuguese admitted that he was surprised at how the left-back was able to play without limitation, and praised the defender for the sacrifices he’d made during the summer.
All signs pointed to a successful union between player and manager – not least since Mourinho had courted Shaw while he was Chelsea boss.
The 21-year-old started the season strongly, playing 69 minutes in the Community Shield and completing United’s first three league games against Bournemouth, Southampton and Hull.
Defeats by Manchester City and Watford changed everything, though. Mourinho, as he has often done in the past, blamed his players – with Shaw and Henrikh Mkhitaryan picked out as the two main culprits. The former drew flak for standing off Nordin Amrabat as Watford scored their second goal at Vicarage Road, and Mourinho hinted at tactical and mental weaknesses in his game. The pair exchanged words when the 21-year-old was substituted, although Shaw claims to have taken the criticism on board and insisted he wasn’t disappointed with his manager's comments.
Someone else was, though.
Carrot or the stick
The situation hadn’t improved by December, with the Portuguese warning Shaw that he needed to “improve and develop his game” in order to win back his place
Shaw's brother intervened on Twitter, which did little to dispel rumours of a rift. “Mourinho didn’t even include Luke in the squad even though he’s fit and healthy, he’s always had something against Luke, knew it,” Ben Shaw wrote in October.
The situation hadn’t improved by December, with Mourinho warning Shaw that to win back his place he needed to “improve and develop his game”.
Over time, though, it's become increasingly clear that Shaw hasn’t responded well to such confrontation. Stories linking him with a move away from Old Trafford in January didn’t help to diffuse the situation either. His agent, Jonathan Barnett, moved to quash all rumours, but Tottenham and Chelsea’s interest was so widely reported that it’s hard to believe it was completely fabricated.
New beginnings?
Post Saint-Etienne, where Mourinho had left Shaw out of his squad completely for both legs, the Portuguese preached patience: “He needs to wait for his chance, work better and better, and show he does not give anything cheap.”
Perhaps, though, there is some light at the end of the tunnel – judging by Mourinho's comments after the Bournemouth game.
“In practical terms we have lots of left-backs,” said the Portuguese. “The reality is that Blind, Shaw, Rojo and Darmian can all play left-back – but they are different players.
“I think that, in a couple of years, one of them should become the best of all – because he has all the attributes to be the best – and that’s Luke Shaw. Because of his age, his physicality, his intensity, his aggressiveness and his ability going forward, he can be the best. But to be the best you need to work – you need to work hard and that’s what he’s trying to do.”
It seems as much an arm around the shoulder as he's ever had at Old Trafford – but maybe that's all this situation ever required. The truth is that Shaw hasn't progressed at a crucial stage of his career, but now it's going to take some give and take between him and Mourinho to get him back on track.
The former Saint isn't the only player Mourinho has taken a hardline stance with this season: Mkhitaryan and Martial have both emerged from the wilderness, and Shaw's start on Saturday might be his manager's way of guiding the young Englishman out of the woods too.
