Amad Diallo Urges Manchester United to Chase Historic 61-Year Milestone with Patience
Amad Diallo has set his sights on an almost unparalleled transformation for Manchester United, outlining a climb into the Premier League's top five as constituting a "good season" for the team.
Even with the strong performances from the Ivorian winger, who stood out as one of United's few bright spots during an otherwise challenging individual campaign, the Red Devils crashed to a dismal 15th place finish in 2024–25, marking their worst top-flight position since their relegation back in 1974.
Yet, to find precedent for the kind of dramatic improvement Amad envisions, one must look back decades. Climbing from 15th to fifth would require United to surge 10 positions within a single campaign—something the club last accomplished between 1962 and 1964. Following a brush with relegation that saw them finish 19th in 1962–63, United soared 17 places to secure second place behind Liverpool the following season.
The breakthrough of a young George Best helped forge United's legendary 'Holy Trinity' featuring the Northern Irish talent alongside Bobby Charlton and Denis Law during that remarkable 1963–64 season. Without a future Ballon d'Or recipient waiting in their youth ranks, United might struggle to engineer such a dramatic reversal.
Throughout the Premier League era, United's biggest single-season improvement has been just four positions—rising from sixth to second under José Mourinho's guidance between 2016 and 2018.
Amad remained optimistic despite the challenges. "A good season will be top five," he declared to reporters as United kicked off their preparations for the upcoming season with a lackluster 0–0 stalemate against Leeds United. "I hope we can achieve that top five at the end of the season because I think we would deserve it.
"I think the fans have to be patient with us. There's a new manager, with new players and new tactics, so we know last season wasn't really good for the team. But I think this season we will win a lot with him and I hope we are going to achieve a lot of good things by the end of the season."
England's premier division was arguably more fluid during an era before massive financial resources allowed the wealthiest clubs to cement their elevated positions. United have inadvertently challenged this pattern by sinking to the table's lower reaches, though the ambitious target set by Amad has been accomplished by another team in recent times.
Leicester City holds the record for the most dramatic single-season improvement in Premier League history, jumping 13 positions to capture the 2015–16 championship. However, their starting position the previous year (14th) was still superior to United's recent showing.