I watched Manchester United all year and realised David Moyes had something they were missing

It was in the final week of February that it felt as though the Manchester United of old was popping its head above the parapet.

After beating Barcelona 2-1 in the second-leg of their Europa League play-off round tie at Old Trafford, United ended their six-year wait for a trophy three days later, lifting the Carabao Cup at Wembley. One of the most iconic images captured from that 2-0 triumph over Newcastle United was of Erik ten Hag dancing with Lisandro Martinez and Antony on the Wembley turf.

Both Martinez and Antony had followed Ten Hag in swapping Amsterdam for Manchester. Both arrived for big-money fees and both had been hand-picked by the United boss in his quest to put his own stamp on the squad he had inherited.

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Despite an initially shaky start, Martinez soon settled into life in England. Along with fellow summer signing Casemiro, he was making a legitimate case to make the Team of the Season.

Antony, on the flip side, offered glimpses of what he could bring to the table. His tie-winning strike against Barcelona felt as though it would go down as his breakthrough moment in M16.

Since bending home that left-footed effort almost a year ago, however, he has scored just two goals - the most recent of which was plundered on April 16 in a 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest at the City Ground. It was therefore somewhat ironic that his last act of 2023 saw him hooked less than 10 minutes into the second half of Saturday's defeat at the same venue to a background of cheers from the away end.

It was the second time in less than two months that the sight of