Manchester United are definitely in transition, but it’s always darkest before dawn.

It seems like last season all over again, doesn't it? All the optimism surrounding Manchester United’s resurrection has disappeared within a month. It was never going to be an easy task to turn around their fortunes for van Gaal, and perhaps it was his involvement in the World Cup, which led to the creation of this aura about him, that has proved to be a hindrance in their path back to glory.

While LvG was busy guiding the Netherlands to an extremely impressive third placed position in Brazil, his Premier League counterparts were already hard at work. Brendan Rodgers had already secured the signings of Emre Can, Rickie Lambert and Adam Lallana; his former protégé Jose Mourinho had signed Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas Felipe Luis and Manuel Pellegrini had already brought Fernando and Bacary Sagna to the blue half of Manchester.

This meant that van Gaal metaphorically started the race when his rivals had already completed the first lap. And with a team so short on confidence and quality, it was always going to take time. Yet perhaps not even van Gaal had foreseen quite how far the 20 time champions had fallen.

A midfield that once comprised of Paul Scholes, Michael Carrick, Cristiano Ronaldo and Ryan Giggs now consisted of Ashley Young, Tom Cleverley, Darren Fletcher and Antonio Valencia. This was code red.

And he has acted upon it- Marcos Rojo’s arrival will lift the burden from Tyler Blackett’s inexperienced shoulders and Luke Shaw’s return to fitness will certainly elicit cheers from the Old Trafford faithful tired of seeing Ashley Young lose possession and tackle poorly in the left wing back spot. Daley Blind too will be an excellent upgrade wherever he plays. It’s that bad at the moment.

Yet the crowning jewel of this summer’s activity is one which will provide most comfort to the fans. Angel Di Maria’s tireless running, speed and creativity breathed new life, albeit sporadically, into a midfield that looks like it can be overrun even by my school team, and I’m Indian.

There were signs, small signs but signs nonetheless of a faint revival of fortunes last afternoon. For one thing, the centre backs seemed more positionally aware and looked like they were finally coming to terms with the new formation. So were the wing backs, not that they were awfully effective.

The press hailed van Gaal’s luck when the fixture list was announced; it seems like the only thing that has gone his way so far. Injuries to ten players, 3 central midfielders among them, have left the team worse off than it should’ve been. The formation is naturally suited to the new boys. Luke Shaw and Daley Blind will especially thrive under it. As will Angel Di Maria, who was wonderful in a similar position last season.

The only ones who worry me are the men who seemed most assured, Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie. Rooney, so used to probing deep, looking for the ball in his no.10 role doesn’t quite seem at home as a no.9 yet. Van Persie has been peripheral in his last few games, including those towards the end of the World Cup and seems to be going through a dip in form at the worst possible time.

There is also an enormous amount of dead wood that needs to be done away with. Tom Cleverley needs to be immediately sold to Aston Villa before they change their mind, ditto for Ashley Young who’d need a miracle to get into the first team following the arrival of Blind. Anderson, in all probability, has also played his last cursed game for the club. I’d be sad to see Welbeck and Kagawa go, but it also seems on the cards.

There seem to be two negatives for every positive to United’s season so far, but this, historically, is the way Van Gaal works. Here’s a man who has guided clubs like Bayern Munich and Barcelona through similar situations. Once the system clicks in, results will follow.

Injuries and teething problems are what have caused this dramatic dip in form, but all is not lost. It is always darkest before dawn