Will David Moyes make good on his promises?

If no one else is particularly confident about the new Manchester United manager, David Moyes, at least he is. He has pledged to sort the club out and appears unfazed at following in Sir Alex’s footsteps.

Pretty tough gig really for anyone, particularly after all the media hype following Alex Ferguson’s retirement in the summer. But, is Moyes really going to ‘sort out’ Man U?

It hasn’t been the best of starts, if we’re honest. His team is languishing in eighth place in the Premier League but they did just beat Liverpool to secure a fourth round tie with Norwich in the League Cup.

He is adamant that he can ‘fix it’ and has publicly pledged to ‘turn it around’ for the Reds.

It can’t be easy after he had to watch his team lose to Liverpool and then lose really badly to main rivals Manchester City right at the beginning of the season. Their up and down form and apparent lack of team play must be making the fans nervous, as well as those who are counting on them to win.

Their odds are changing all the time, and it does look like they’re settling down now, so it’s entirely possible that he will help them return to form.

The stats may not sound good but it’s actually also true that his team has won five of the eight games across all competitions, which is a better start than their beloved Fergy had – in fact, it’s the best start of a new Manchester United manager since 1946 when Matt Busby took control.

And Moyes himself is thankful that people are starting to recognise that there are some good statistics to quote about his performance. Perhaps it was inevitable that he would have a tough time from a press and public who seemed to have so much love for and loyalty to Sir Alex.

He has been quoted as saying: “That is one of the good stats. I have not had that many good ones…. Every game is either a first for something… it is going to be the way, isn’t it.” So, the former Everton boss does seem to understand that he has to weather the media storm before he can prove himself, and it is definitely worth noting that one very strong fact in his favour when you’re looking at Manchester United’s odds across the whole 2013/2014 season. There’s an awful long way to go yet.