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The Red Devils have been on the down for quite some time now and their recent loss to Everton further confirms it. The loss against Barcelona in the Champions League wasn’t that bad considering the kind of opponents they were up against, but at least in that tie, they put up a fight.
Against Everton, they didn’t even bother, the players played like they didn’t even want to be there. Matic looked so pedestrian in that tie and the fact that he took the blame for that game doesn’t cover up the fact that United have been poor of late.
Against City, Manchester United will come up against an adversary that they know all too well. This is a team that has been trying to shut down United for quite some time and thus far, they have been succeeding. Since Sir Alex retired, it is safe to say that City have been the better Manchester side.
Here, this match will be of most importance to both teams since City are after the League title which they are fighting for with Liverpool. United, on the other hand, is after the fourth position. With Arsenal, Tottenham, and Chelsea as the other contestants for the third and fourth spots, United simply cannot afford another loss.
Manchester United are expected to make major changes to their squad tonight, especially after the 4-0 mauling they got against Everton. The team, however, is expected to continue lining up in a 4-3-3 formation.
Here are the players that are expected to make up the starting eleven tonight.
#1 Goalkeeper:
David de Gea despite his recent struggles should continue being in between the sticks at the moment. Though, Ole needs to find a way to sort out whatever it is that has the Spanish number one distracted.
De Gea is just one of the stars that really flopped against Everton, though he made one outstanding save with his foot. In this tie, the team will need nothing but pure focus and concentration from their number one. If he continues with the same form tonight, maybe it will be time for Ole to call his understudy to action.
#2 Defence
The defence is one area that United simply need to restructure in the close season as the current options, other than Luke Shaw haven’t looked United material. Against Everton, they showed everyone just why United have been linked with almost any defender in the market today.
The likes of Chris Smalling, Victor Lindelof, and Phil Jones haven’t inspired any confidence when played. Against City tonight, the manager will have another major decision to make and that’s deciding who starts between Young and Diogo Dalot. Young has been poor and has been costing United in the matches he’s played and maybe it is time for the manager to put some faith in the young Portuguese fullback who looks to have potential.
The centre backs have pretty much been picking themselves out with Smalling and Lindelof looking to be the ones that will start against City tonight. Luke Shaw is back from suspension and will lineup in the left back position.
#3 Midfield
The midfield seems to be unstable at the moment with Ander Herrera’s contract situation not resolved and now looks injury prone. Paul Pogba is another one that doesn’t have his head in the game. That leaves only Nemanja Matic who was seriously run over by Everton on Sunday.
If the Norwegian manager wants to settle this squad, he should really do something about his midfielders. When he was starting out, they were the ones that kept things ticking and they dominated teams. But since they started pursuing different agendas, the team hasn’t looked the same.
Paul Pogba should make up his mind if he wants to stay or go to Madrid and Herrera should sign the new contract or leave as well. It’s time United stopped babying players who don’t want to be there.
Against City, the manager should look to start Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic and Andreas Pereira. Fred got another chance against Everton but he didn’t take it, now it’s time for Andreas to show everyone what he can do.
#4 Forwards
What can you say about a team with forwards that aren’t looking threatening? That’s what you can see happening at United at the moment. The forwards aren’t threatening enough.
They can claim that they aren’t getting enough service from their midfield, but they aren’t curving out any chances for themselves either. Anthony Martial looked out of sorts against Everton and did nothing that can be remembered.
The less said about Lukaku the better. For £75 million, he simply isn’t United quality and they should do away with him. Rashford, on the other hand, isn’t clinical enough and has been running down blind alleys for a number of games now.
Forget his work rate, strikers are judged by the goals they score and he simply isn’t scoring enough. Some may argue that he’s still young and has a chance to grow but take a look at Mbappe and you’ll see the difference.
It is time Marcus Rashford upped his game or United should find a striker that can assure them of 20 or more goals per season. The likes of Mata and Sanchez should be moved on to clear up the wage bill for new players.
Jesse Lingard, though, hasn’t looked the same since his hamstring injury is still United’s best bet on the right against City.
Here is how the team should lineup against City:
Davis De Gea; Diogo Dalot, Chris Smalling, Victor Lindelof, Luke Shaw; Andreas Pereira, Nemanja Matic, Paul Pogba; Jesse Lingard, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial.
