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

Match Report- Manchester United 1-2 Swansea City

Right before kickoff at Old Trafford, a palpable sense of excitement and expectation from Louis van Gaal and his men hung in the air, but the tumult gave way to a familiar sense of déjà vu as Ki Sueng Yeung slammed in an excellent strike to the bottom corner of a helpless David De Gea’s goal almost half an hour into the contest.

The atmosphere soon went from expectant to fearful as Swansea started to express themselves more freely, with Wayne Routledge and Nathan Dyer looking to exploit United’s weakness in the wide areas by getting into the space left behind by Ashley Young and impressive debutant Jesse Lingard.

It was the latter who brought most to the Red Devils’ attack, troubling Neil Taylor down the left hand side with his pace and movement. A painful challenge by Ashley Williams, however, left Lingard limping off the pitch with an ankle knock after just 23 minutes; replaced by Adnan Januzaj, who wore Ryan Giggs' iconic number 11 jersey for the first time.

United comfortably dominated possession, but problems came, surprisingly, from an area where they were considered the strongest- Rooney, Hernandez and Mata were kept quiet by a diligent Swansea back four led by Ashley Williams, who defended uncompromisingly to ensure that the Swans went into half time the happier side.

Watching on from his seat next to Ryan Giggs, Louis van Gaal abandoned the 3-4-1-2 for a classic 4-2-3-1 in the second half, bringing Nani on for Hernandez and playing Ashley Young and Phil Jones as left and right fullbacks respectively.

The gamble seemed to be paying off, as Adnan Januzaj won a corner from yet another foray down the left hand side. Mata's delivery was headed on by Jones to Rooney, who improvised and struck a wonderful overhead kick into the bottom corner right in front of a rapturous Stretford End.

A half time comeback seemed to be on the cards, with Rooney and Mata more involved in the attack. Januzaj was particularly impressive, stretching the visitors' defence with his pace and trickery.

Yet just as United looked as if they would indeed end the afternoon with three points, new signing Jefferson Montero's cross was mis hit by Wayne Routledge. It fell to Gylfi Sigurdsson, who made no mistake, giving Swansea the lead once more. 

And it was to stay that way, with Swansea thwarting late pressure from the Red Devils, who began to send it long and into the box to Marouane Fellaini, Ander Herrera's replacement. Neither impacted the game very much. 

Bafetimbi Gomis, the new signing from Lyon also gave fans an exciting glimpse as to what may lie ahead with an impressive display as the lone striker. He may have scored, if not for an excellent last ditch tackle by Phil Jones, who was excellent at the right side of defence. Tyler Blackett too continued his impressive rise under van Gaal, with a calm and unaffected performance on his league debut.

For all their dominance on the ball, United's latest disappointing loss is perhaps a blessing in disguise. The squad desperately needs a top quality centre back and experienced cover for Luke Shaw, as well as a top quality winger as Nani's performance showed. Its still to early to say, but Manchester United must act soon to avoid another debacle. As for Swansea, the future looks pretty bright.