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A little over a year ago, Shinji Kagawa was on cloud nine. After all, he had led his side, Borussia Dortmund to the Bundesliga title, following which he completed a dream move to Manchester United. However, things soon turned sour for the Japanese star.
Last season, Kagawa hardly got any playing time. He got to play the full 90 minutes only on six occasions, and that includes all competitions. To add to that, he suffered a knee injury that sidelined him for two months. When he did return to full fitness, he hardly ever played in position.
Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp summed up Kagawa’s predicament in May when he said, “Shinji Kagawa is one of the best players in the world and he now plays 20 minutes at Manchester United – on the left wing! My heart breaks.”
He would have hoped that things would improve in his second season at Old Trafford but the youngster hardly got any playing time under new manager, David Moyes. So far, he’s played in just 4 games, and has never been directly involved in a goal. Moyes has repeatedly tried to play down his absence, but all these force one to ask: What’s the problem with Kagawa?
The simplest explanation would be physical conditioning. Last season, maybe, Kagawa indeed did not meet the physical requirements of a football player in England. However, he has had more than a year to improve his constitution to the required level. Also, he came from a Dortmund side which put a lot of emphasis on hard running. Kagawa in fact averaged 12.36 km per 90 minutes, the highest in Bundesliga.
Kagawa is a central attacking midfielder. In England, to play in the centre, players are generally expected to be tall, quick and physically strong. Kagawa, at 5’8″ and listed at 141 pounds, fits none of these criteria. The only similarly diminutive player who has established himself as a star in the premier league is Sergio Aguero, but Kagawa lacks the quick burst of pace and upper body strength which Aguero uses against the larger central players.
Kagawa’s inability to meet the physical requirements might be one reason why David Moyes favours the physically bigger Marouane Fellaini.
Culture would also be a major obstacle. Kagawa is Japanese and played for a German club from 2010-12. For the past 15 months, he’s been playing for United, in England. It would probably be hard for him to adapt to life in a new country, let alone a new league.
At Dortmund, Kagawa used his technique, skill and tactical ability to create plays. He was an expert at finding space off the ball and he received brilliant service from players like Nuri Sahin and Ilkay Gundogan. More often than that, he engaged in sublime one-two passes with Mario Goetze and exchanged clever back heelers with Robert Lewandowski.
He thrived in the clever, sophisticated passing game which Dortmund used. He used to create subtle plays using quick dummies, one-two passes or deft fakes.
At United, the style of play is vastly different. They attack from wide positions and use the pace of their wingers to carry the ball forward. Even while the ball is in the centre, it’s the pacey RVP or Wayne Rooney who’s running at the defenders.
Kagawa’s primary position was as a “No. 10″, behind the striker. But he was no playmaker. While Kagawa is a great passer, he’s more Isco than Ozil. He scores more than he assists. And at United, that position is already filled by Rooney.
During those occasions when Kagawa was used behind the striker, he didn’t have any body from deep to play him the ball like he had Sahin or Gundogan at Dortmund. This means that he has to drop back and out of position to receive the ball. He’s also not of the required physical build to chase down long, high passes.
When he plays on the left flank, he’s out of position, and doesn’t have a Mario Goetze type player with whom he can exchange a succession of one-touch passes.
Since Moyes failed to acquire Thiago Alcantara or Cesc Fabregas, United was unable to add the needed class from deep midfield. Also, Rooney has found his groove playing behind Robin Van Persie and the duo form one of the most lethal strike pairs in the world right now. It’s understandable that with nobody backing him from deep, Moyes wouldn’t want to risk playing Kagawa behind the striker.
The only way for Kagawa to exude his true potential would be for United to play him as the central midfielder in a 4-3-1-2 formation behind RVP and Rooney. However, United has always stuck to a formation which emphasizes width, be it in a 4-3-3, 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1 formation.
Kagawa left a tailor-made situation at Dortmund for a more traditional powerhouse in which he has had to move out of his element. While everybody knew that the first year would always be an underperforming one for him, he’s displaying a continued inability to earn more playing time. Not exactly the type of player Moyes would need at the moment in his squad.
It’s also impractical to expect a team like Manchester United to change their entire style of play just to accommodate one player. Hey, Kagawa’s a star, but he’s not that big a star. Maybe it would be better for both the team and the player if United and Kagawa decide to part ways this January.
