Man United have three teamsheets but not using the best one
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Another Manchester United drought has broken double figures. A player has not stopped in the mixed zone, an area reserved for journalists to converse with players following a match, since the draw with Southampton on August 31.
A colleague asked Harry Maguire for two minutes of his time at Norwich and he politely made his excuses. Maguire stopped at St Mary's and the safer bets for a quote tend to be those fit and firing, yet you could count those on one hand at United.
The concept of a first XI or an 'untouchable', as Jose Mourinho referred to the regulars in his great Chelsea side, is alien at United. Some are certain starters only by virtue of no competition in a squad that was not replenished in the summer. Maguire is untouchable, though not in a rich vein of form.
Victor Lindelof's place is secure in spite of his regression. Aaron Wan-Bissaka appears faced by a force field whenever he approaches the final third but is a first-teamer, as is Scott McTominay, with or without Paul Pogba. The callow attacking alternatives leave Anthony Martial, Daniel James and Marcus Rashford without credible competitors.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's tactical acumen underpinned United's mini resurgence that ended in the wet and wild Vitality Stadium. United were fixed rather than fluid again and his first substitution was so like for like neither Andreas Pereira nor Jesse Lingard are a genuine playmaker.
The flaw in Solskjaer's approach is he insists on a No.10 and United do not have one who is good enough. It is either Pereira or Lingard, occasionally Juan Mata, whose best days are behind him. United are lucid to the problem and have earmarked James Maddison as the solution.
Maddison is not going to parachute into Old Trafford until the summer, at the earliest. Leicester host Arsenal this weekend and Crystal Palace go to Chelsea. Two home wins and the top four might be boxed off before the Christmas boxes come out of the attic.
Pereira recorded a pitiful 63 per cent passing accuracy at Bournemouth and of the eight he attempted to play forward only two were successful. Overall, United managed 13 touches in the Bournemouth penalty area between them. "We need more creativity," Solskjaer lamented.
"But we've got loads of players here in the squad who could create more, it's not just look outside, we have to do with what we have." United have too many have nots than haves.
It would help if Solskjaer had not succumbed to Louis van Gaal's mistake. That sprightly spring in 2015 - when United bossed Tottenham, Liverpool and Manchester City during a six-game winning run - was sparked by the switch to 4-3-3 with a midfield triangle. Van Gaal inexplicably reverted to 4-2-3-1 at the start of his second season and literally sent some supporters to sleep.
Solskjaer's honeymoon period was underpinned by an identical 4-3-3 shape, with Paul Pogba on the left and in the form of his life. Only United decided Ander Herrera was inessential, made a beeline for Sean Longstaff until they were quoted £50m and ended the window devoid of a new midfielder. The slow and sluggish goalscorer whose professionalism plummeted was let go and he was replace in number only, as if the United kingmakers were unaware Romelu Lukaku still outscored a supposedly revived Marcus Rashford last term.
Solskjaer has relied on 4-2-3-1 with Pogba more withdrawn (when fit), as if he would automatically replicate the World Cup form of his axis with N'Golo Kante. McTominay is not Kante and France had Blaise Matuidi, Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann ahead of the midfield.
A midfield triumvirate of Pogba, McTominay and Fred appears balanced and has potential. The trouble is Pogba has missed 10 of the last 12 matches and there is not a suitable alternative.
Manchester City have Fernandinho or Rodri, Bernardo or David Silva, Kevin de Bruyne or Ilkay Gundogan. Liverpool get by with functional workhorses like James Milner and Jordan Henderson for there is Georgino Wijnaldum, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Fabinho and Naby Keita.
Solskjaer's successful 3-4-1-2 experiment against Chelsea and Liverpool reaffirmed the feeling United have developed a small-time mentality. Four of their best results this term have come against top four teams (Chelsea twice, Liverpool and Leicester), where United surrendered possession and relied on the counter-attack. Solskjaer corroborated that by switching to a back four at relegation fodder Norwich.
Pereira just about justified his selection at Liverpool through his energy and pressing that suffocated Fabinho for the majority, and the split striker strategy procured the breakthrough. When the onus is on United to unlock opponents, Pereira is exposed.
Like Lingard, his best work comes off the ball, which is unacceptable for a playmaker. The mild caveat is if Martial, James and Rashford are fully fit for Tottenham at home or City away next month, would Solskjaer have the courage to drop one of them for Pereira? The best players do not make for the best team, whatever United's is.
Unlike two years ago, that sequence of the stultifying draw at Anfield, the Huddersfield horror show and obligatory defeat at Chelsea, United do not pine for Pogba as much, for the support network to surround him is inadequate. They have as many wins as Newcastle and Aston Villa, and scored fewer league goals than Burnley.
Little wonder they are not talkative.
Another Manchester United drought has broken double figures. A player has not stopped in the mixed zone, an area reserved for journalists to converse with players following a match, since the draw with Southampton on August 31.
A colleague asked Harry Maguire for two minutes of his time at Norwich and he politely made his excuses. Maguire stopped at St Mary's and the safer bets for a quote tend to be those fit and firing, yet you could count those on one hand at United.
The concept of a first XI or an 'untouchable', as Jose Mourinho referred to the regulars in his great Chelsea side, is alien at United. Some are certain starters only by virtue of no competition in a squad that was not replenished in the summer. Maguire is untouchable, though not in a rich vein of form.
Victor Lindelof's place is secure in spite of his regression. Aaron Wan-Bissaka appears faced by a force field whenever he approaches the final third but is a first-teamer, as is Scott McTominay, with or without Paul Pogba. The callow attacking alternatives leave Anthony Martial, Daniel James and Marcus Rashford without credible competitors.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's tactical acumen underpinned United's mini resurgence that ended in the wet and wild Vitality Stadium. United were fixed rather than fluid again and his first substitution was so like for like neither Andreas Pereira nor Jesse Lingard are a genuine playmaker.
The flaw in Solskjaer's approach is he insists on a No.10 and United do not have one who is good enough. It is either Pereira or Lingard, occasionally Juan Mata, whose best days are behind him. United are lucid to the problem and have earmarked James Maddison as the solution.
Maddison is not going to parachute into Old Trafford until the summer, at the earliest. Leicester host Arsenal this weekend and Crystal Palace go to Chelsea. Two home wins and the top four might be boxed off before the Christmas boxes come out of the attic.
Pereira recorded a pitiful 63 per cent passing accuracy at Bournemouth and of the eight he attempted to play forward only two were successful. Overall, United managed 13 touches in the Bournemouth penalty area between them. "We need more creativity," Solskjaer lamented.
"But we've got loads of players here in the squad who could create more, it's not just look outside, we have to do with what we have." United have too many have nots than haves.
It would help if Solskjaer had not succumbed to Louis van Gaal's mistake. That sprightly spring in 2015 - when United bossed Tottenham, Liverpool and Manchester City during a six-game winning run - was sparked by the switch to 4-3-3 with a midfield triangle. Van Gaal inexplicably reverted to 4-2-3-1 at the start of his second season and literally sent some supporters to sleep.
Solskjaer's honeymoon period was underpinned by an identical 4-3-3 shape, with Paul Pogba on the left and in the form of his life. Only United decided Ander Herrera was inessential, made a beeline for Sean Longstaff until they were quoted £50m and ended the window devoid of a new midfielder. The slow and sluggish goalscorer whose professionalism plummeted was let go and he was replace in number only, as if the United kingmakers were unaware Romelu Lukaku still outscored a supposedly revived Marcus Rashford last term.
Solskjaer has relied on 4-2-3-1 with Pogba more withdrawn (when fit), as if he would automatically replicate the World Cup form of his axis with N'Golo Kante. McTominay is not Kante and France had Blaise Matuidi, Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann ahead of the midfield.
A midfield triumvirate of Pogba, McTominay and Fred appears balanced and has potential. The trouble is Pogba has missed 10 of the last 12 matches and there is not a suitable alternative.
Manchester City have Fernandinho or Rodri, Bernardo or David Silva, Kevin de Bruyne or Ilkay Gundogan. Liverpool get by with functional workhorses like James Milner and Jordan Henderson for there is Georgino Wijnaldum, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Fabinho and Naby Keita.
Solskjaer's successful 3-4-1-2 experiment against Chelsea and Liverpool reaffirmed the feeling United have developed a small-time mentality. Four of their best results this term have come against top four teams (Chelsea twice, Liverpool and Leicester), where United surrendered possession and relied on the counter-attack. Solskjaer corroborated that by switching to a back four at relegation fodder Norwich.
Pereira just about justified his selection at Liverpool through his energy and pressing that suffocated Fabinho for the majority, and the split striker strategy procured the breakthrough. When the onus is on United to unlock opponents, Pereira is exposed.
Like Lingard, his best work comes off the ball, which is unacceptable for a playmaker. The mild caveat is if Martial, James and Rashford are fully fit for Tottenham at home or City away next month, would Solskjaer have the courage to drop one of them for Pereira? The best players do not make for the best team, whatever United's is.
Unlike two years ago, that sequence of the stultifying draw at Anfield, the Huddersfield horror show and obligatory defeat at Chelsea, United do not pine for Pogba as much, for the support network to surround him is inadequate. They have as many wins as Newcastle and Aston Villa, and scored fewer league goals than Burnley.
Little wonder they are not talkative.
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