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Amid the fanfare surrounding Alexis Sanchez’s arrival at Manchester United, his start has been mediocre for the Red Devils. The loss to Tottenham was a far cry away from the brilliant football that the team played in the month of January. On a cold night at Wembley, two major defensive blunders by Phil Jones meant that the Spurs took a good two-goal advantage over Mourinho’s men.
After being defeated clinically in the clash at Spurs, Mourinho faces a busy February in which his team will face Sevilla in the UEFA Champions League knockout stage. They will then compete against Chelsea on February 25 as another clash against one of the top six team awaits Mourinho.
In the midst of this, Huddersfield Town will challenge Manchester United in the fifth leg of the FA Cup. Overall, this month will largely determine how the season pans out for United.
So, what is the dilemma that Jose has to deal with now?
#5 Sanchez has his own limitations
It is true to say that Alexis Sanchez has played in a wide range of positions in his playing career. He is deemed as a player who can feature in all four attacking positions. However, the Chilean is no superhuman and has his own drawbacks too.
While it is true that Sanchez can play on the right wing, he has hardly ever looked comfortable playing over there. He is a right-footed player and possesses good playmaking skills. He looks to create chances from cramped positions and relies on his stronger right foot to carry the ball ahead.
Even though Sanchez has experience of playing on the right flank from his time at FC Barcelona, the Chilean has hardly featured over there since then. It is highly unlikely that Jose will play him in an unfamiliar position so early on in his United career.
Also, if we go through the three games that Sanchez has played in the United shirt so far, he hardly wanders away from the left flank. The former Arsenal man can play behind the striker too, but that again denies him space to weave his skills on the ball.
He has the ability to take the ball away from crowded areas, but the opposition tends to foul him regularly and this would mean that Sanchez would not get the free run that he usually gets while playing on the left flank.
The Chilean looks set to play as the left-winger for quite some time now and Jose has to deal with this situation delicately.
#4 The delicate case of Marcus Rashford:
After an inconsistent season last time around, Marcus Rashford started the 2017/18 season with aplomb. He provided a breath of fresh air with his searing pace and incessant tendency to track back on a regular basis.
Rashford stretches the defence and uses his pace to good effect whenever he is introduced to the game. Essentially a right-footed player, Rashford has proven to be not-as-impressive from the right wing.
The young lad’s close control is worrying when he plays on the right wing as he has a tendency to overplay the ball and lose possession. Despite his obvious talents, Rashford needs to improve a lot in his decision making up-front.
He seems to be caught in two minds in the box at times and hence there is a lot of finishing to be done in his game. Naturally, if worked properly on, the young Englishman can be a potent threat from the right flank too. At 20 years of age, one can definitely work on his game.
#3 What can be done with Anthony Martial
Despite being of around the same age as that of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial looks like a much better player currently. Sure, he has the tendency to fade away from games at times but his finishing ability impresses the most.
He often needs just one or two chances to finish and possesses a very calm head in front of the goal. Moreover, there is more finesse to Martial’s game than that of Rashford. The Frenchman dribbles the ball really well and is adept at taking on defenders with ease.
However, it is his lacklustre behaviour and complacency that lets him down at times. He has age by his side to shrug off complacency from his game and would have to do so with the increasing competition for attacking positions in the club.
However, the issue is that Martial thrives while playing on the left wing too. He likes to cut in from the wing and to take a shot from his stronger right foot. With Sanchez playing over there, Martial might have to adjust to playing behind the striker or even as the forward at times.
The Frenchman has a good passing range and a very silky first touch. Moreover, his ability to tame the defenders with his skills on the ball can help him thrive while playing in the number 10 role.
#4 The curiosity of Paul Pogba’s position
Ever since his world-record transfer to Manchester United last season, Paul Pogba’s position has been under immense scrutiny. Initially forced to play deeper in his first season, Paul Pogba has played in a much more advanced position this time around.
Nemanja Matic generally shields the defence which in turn gives Pogba the license to surge ahead with precision. However, against teams who like to press high up on the pitch, Pogba has to drop back to do some defensive work.
For example, in the match against Tottenham Hotspur, the Lilywhites focus on recovering the ball in the opposite half and that restricted Pogba’s movement in Spurs’ half. As witnessed from the game against Everton on the New Year’s Eve, Paul Pogba is sumptuous going ahead when he plays on the base of a two-man midfield.
Particularly, in big games, Jose Mourinho should prefer playing Ander Herrera with Matic at the centre of the park so that Pogba could be totally relieved of the defensive duties.
If Mourinho wants to continue with four attacking players then one of either Juan Mata or Jesse Lingard should drop back to allow Pogba to surge ahead.
Overall, it is obvious now that Pogba likes to play in the left-sided midfield position. This allows him to make diagonal runs and that helps him to link up with the other forwards. Moreover, his partnership with Alexis Sanchez on the left side can prove to be fruitful for Manchester United on the attacking front.
It will shift the creativity for Manchester United to the left side of the pitch. Currently, around 37% of attacking moves for Manchester United come from the left side of the pitch. This could see a significant increase if Alexis and Pogba start featuring on the left flank regularly.
#1 The resurgence of Jesse Lingard:
Long gone are the days when the academy product was a lacklustre and inconsistent figure in the squad. Now, Lingard has developed to become one of the first names in the team sheet for the team. While the likes of Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford are major goal-scoring threats, Lingard is more of an all-round, versatile attacking player.
He can usually drop deep to recollect and recycle the possession of the ball. His ability to carry the ball forward is used well by the manager who trusts him to play in between the lines and to create unrest in the opposition half with his clever off the ball movements.
This season, Lingard has been used as a central attacking midfielder and has already scored 12 goals and notched 4 assists in all competitions. However, the young lad is a very versatile player and hence he can play in a host of positions.
Lingard can also be pushed to the midfield to accommodate the three forwards in a 4-3-3 formation. His incessant running coupled with the ability to scored wonderful goals have seen him a take a giant leap in his career under Jose Mourinho.
The Conclusion:
It is obvious to state that Romelu Lukaku will play as the centre-forward and Juan Mata would be drafted as the inward right-winger in any Manchester United lineup. Keeping in mind all the attributes stated in this piece, this would be my most formidable Manchester United lineup (when all players are fit):
