Amuse Productions

Heading into Matchday 28, Manchester United had the impossible opportunity, or so it seemed, to bump themselves into 3rd place in the Premier League table, after Aston Villa fell to Wolves 2-0. United would then take this opportunity and run with it, defeating an in-form Crystal Palace team 2-1 via a Bruno Fernandes penalty, as well as a fiery Benjamin Sesko header (Assisted by Bruno Fernandes, who is on track to break the assist record for a season), bringing him to 7 goals in the last 8 games. Despite a 2-1 defeat to 10-man Newcastle United, it barely marked United’s first defeat in Michael Carrick’s managerial career with the club after 11 total games in charge.

With the way United were performing up until Amorim’s firing, sitting in 6th after 20 matchdays, and a less than encouraging Amorim who had actually called this Manchester United squad, “the worst squad ever”, United had less than a promising look for their chances to make it to Europe throughout their season. With a now 3 point cushion in 3rd place in the Premier League, as well as the sacking of a less than willing gaffer has breathed new life into this squad, and its been the simplest of adjustments, play the players in their best possible roles, what an innovation!

Who Woulda Thought

A few months ago, I wrote an article that was not meant to be a hit piece on Manchester United as a whole. On the contrary, the purpose was to highlight the reality of what the club needs, and where they should be heading going forward due to their mismanagement coming from the tiptop being ownership.

Although some of those words still ring true, at least in my opinion, the fact that their squad is actually very capable of winning some games is not off the table. Carrick has employed the simple strategy to help that out, by playing the players in their best possible positions. Something so simple to follow, but not easy to execute.

Since Carrick came back, United have gone back to the 4-4-1-1 position with a mixture of Mbeumo at ST, Fernandes at CAM, Cunha/Dorgu (when healthy) at LM, and Diallo at RM. An interesting approach however, is that all of these players rotate in position, playing a free roaming style of football that allows all attackers to have a chance on goal, without clogging up spaces with unnecessary runs that could block any shots. Or inadvertently adding defenders to any attacks as well, shutting down space as a whole. With this fluid style of football, United has been able to defeat opponents with a variety of attack strategies without employing one single style that is recognizable. This has helped keep United as an unpredictable squad that has a creative wretch throughout their form of play.

The player that seems to have benefited the most has been Bruno Fernandes from this new style of play. In the 8 games Michael Carrick has been in Charge this season, Fernandes has amounted 6 assists and 8 total goal contributions. Fernandes has added so much to this attack and should be seen as the heart and soul of the team at the moment. Beyond the normal stats, Fernandes has hustled his way into the top, by being the player with the most passes being made in the Manchester United squad, amount to a little over 11% of the total passes the team has made this season, which means, 1 out of 10 passes in a game, is surely guaranteed to go through Bruno Fernandes.

My main complaint about Fernandes before this takeover, was that too many unnecessary passes were being made, meanwhile not enough runs were being created by Bruno himself. It seems like the issue was never really Bruno, but the team that was around him that did not allow him to fully open up his strengths and play off of those runs and styles perfectly.

Bruno’s movement and vision has only been helped by the addition of Mbeumo, Sesko, and Cunha, as well as Dorgu and Diallo, who can recognize the spaces they need to be at, and with such a rotating squad with positioning, can allow Bruno to have as many options as needed, without much room presented for mistakes. With Bruno being allowed to run into any space and not be confined to one position, it continues to help with runs and attacks to be maximized.

This along with a decent defense, and an immense upgrade in Senne Lammens who has been an extraordinary keeper for his age, and adapting to the pace of the Premier League, has propelled United into a boost of confidence heading into the final third of the season. Now in 3rd, as previously mentioned however, where will this take United?

The Theatre Can Dream Again

9 matchdays remain and United are in a comfortable position for a European spot next season. Currently 3 points above Chelsea and Liverpool in a Champions League position, and vice-versa are 3 points off of a Europa League spot if they are to drop, as well as 7 points potentially off of a Conference League spot as well. 11 points removed from not making it into Europe altogether, we more than likely will see United in European competition next season, and if not the Champions League, as a fan I wouldn’t be too mad, but with the form they’re showing they may be able to hang on.

Out of the 9 matchdays remaining for United, 4 are lower table teams, with 2 of those, being Leeds United and Nottingham Forest, which are battling relegation, a run is more than likely in the cusp for Manchester United.

3 of the other 5 matches are teams that are within United’s point range/positioning in the league being, Aston Villa (their very next fixture), Chelsea, and Liverpool. The remaining 2 are a toss up between Bournemouth (who are recently in-form) as well as Brentford whom has also placed themselves in a great position with help from an amazing Igor Thiago season so far with 18 goals. With a possible 27 points left to gain, I will predict they could at least get 20 points, which puts them at 71 points, and a sure Champions League spot. That is only the beginning however, as they do need to adjust a few things as well as a squad.

The Red Devils Still Need Changes

Despite the good run of form, since Carrick has been given the interim position, a few things need to happen for the squad, so that the team could be in a very comfortable position next season.

1. Offload The Big Wages –

The departure of players like Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, and Casemiro will definitely help with lower wages and bring in bigger players to not only replace them, but stretch out that variance as much as possible to fill in depth for the team. With a new look in the midfield on the horizon, and a handful of names being highlighted as being scouted for their team next season, United not only need to be smart about how they approach transfers, but also need to fill in a healthy rotation for their added games coming up next season potentially. The decision making will also come down to scouting the right players with the right experience who can win games and are used to the pressure of higher profile competitions. With an ongoing injury crisis as well, we should expect to hopefully see United bring in a good handful of players to add more depth and firepower to the main squad.

2. Getting Everyone On Board With The New Style –

With this rotating and freeform attack being implemented as United’s new DNA, it is vital all players keep on the same page for tactics going into every matchday, as well as any changes being made on the fly. As much as veterans such as Luke Shaw and Harry Maguire are useful to the United defense, a pacier fullback, and a up and coming center back would be perfect to look at.

If CB options do not become available, a starting CB rotation of De Ligt, Yoro, Martinez, and Heaven would be decent, but another experienced CB alongside Maguire would add a lot of depth. Potentially even a CB with CDM like tendencies would be amazing such as a John Stones, Jordan Teze from PSV, or even a younger prospect such as Ousmane Diomande which would follow a frequent trend in this squad and promising young talent at the helm. I would bring up Baleba again, but since the open saga about the back and forth between United and Brighton over the price tag for him. It seems to have gotten to Baleba on a mental aspect, and hopefully that fallen confidence is returned soon enough to the promising Cameroonian.

3. Improving The Open Play

These players would help with the new playstyle fluctuate and keep United as a whole in a fluid state throughout open play. One very big positive I would like to point out is their set piece coaching has become a lot more about connection than just floating a ball into the middle and wishing the best. After their 3-1 victory over Aston Villa this past weekend, and a 17th goal from a set piece, United now rank in 4th in the league with set piece goals this season. This comes from their creativity and style of play becoming unpredictable, namely in corners.

Despite this, United have other avenues of scoring, namely 1-2 plays that do look good at times, but do need some further understanding of each other’s positioning to play it at perfection. This rapid style has turned United around with rapid wingers who can comfortably take the ball up. However, United tend to be a slow start team at the moment, working better against a team they attract to pressure them, than them risk the gameplan to breakdown lower block teams.

Games against Man City, Arsenal, and Aston Villa come to mind as really good performances, but performing against a team that has a lower block has always been United’s kryptonite. Not even just United being the one to struggle with these teams, such as Man City drawing against Nottingham Forest 2-2 last matchday, as well as Liverpool losing to Wolves not more than 2 weeks ago. It’s a very cheeky style of play when you see West Ham line up 8 players in their box 1-0 up in the 80th minute, but its not impossible to play against. With a formulated and spread out midfield, as well as the CB/CDM combination, lots of runs and space can be opened up, pushing the opponent back even further and allowing the opposition to leave themselves open for more shots and more rebounds or corners to fall in the hands of United. Of course this does open up the risk of counterattacks, which is why it is smart to know which players need to be in the box and which don’t.

Exciting Times Ahead At Old Trafford

With the offloading of heavy baggage in terms of unwanted wages, the hopes of playing in Europe next season, and a new coach and familiar legend who will hopefully stay, United seem poised and confident in their abilities at the moment. Pushing them to the last push in the final third of the season and a 3 point cushion that will surely surprise everyone if this team remains in 3rd throughout.

With the right players and the right attitude, this team may soar next season, as the heart of the Red Devils surely beats once again!