Manchester United are languishing in the 15th position in the Premier League table after their 0-1 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, February 16.
The situation is quite grim at Old Trafford, as United have now lost in 12 of their 25 Premier League matches so far.
However, if one takes a closer look, one will find that Manchester United created a lot of chances against Tottenham, with Alejandro Garnacho alone missing a few of them.
In the current scenario, especially in the absence of Amad Diallo and Marcus Rashford, who left for Aston Villa on a loan, a 5-3-2 formation that could become a 3-5-2 when the wing-backs overlap, seems to be ideal for the Red Devils.
Why a 5-3-2 Formation is Good for Manchester United?
Manchester United’s ploy to play with three central defenders seems to have worked defensively, as it gives Harry Maguire the freedom to stay in the middle without having to cover a wider area.
However, Patrick Dorgu did not do enough as the left wing-back against Tottenham.
It might prompt Ruben Amorim to play Victor Lindelof as one of the three central defenders in Lisandro Martinez’s absence.
That will allow Noussair Mazraoui to play as a right wing-back and Diogo Dalot, who is quite comfortable going forward, to play as the left wing-back.
Playing a back-five will allow Manchester United to be more secure defensively and also allow them to play a solitary holding midfielder in Casemiro in the absence of both Kobbie Mainoo and Manuel Ugarte.
That will mean that Casemiro will have to worry less about the defence getting exposed in the presence of an extra central defender.
Garnacho and Bruno Fernandes can then play as the left and right-sided midfielders in United’s 5-3-2, which will give them the freedom to exploit the inside channels at will.
Playing with a 3-4-2-1 forces Fernandes to stay deeper and Garnacho to play in a more central role while playing with a 3-4-3 further means that Zirkzee will have to play as a right-winger, which he cannot do.
However, for this formation to ultimately click, both Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund will have to be ready to make good use of the crosses that come their way from the flanks.
The likes of Dalot, Fernandes and Mazraoui are adept at playing crosses, but Zirkzee does not seem to have the capability to make use of the crosses by heading or volleying the ball into the opposition goal.
He will have to develop that ability and Hojlund will have to regain his scoring touch to make things happen up front for the Red Devils.
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The Limitations of an Injury Crisis
Amorim might also think of replacing Zirkzee or Hojlund with a young academy player.
It would have helped Amorim a lot to have Amad as one of the two frontmen, but the latter’s injury has come as a serious blow to his team.
In the upcoming Premier League matches against Ipswich Town and Fulham, it should be United’s ploy to use that formation to make the best use of the resources available to them.
Fernandes and Garnacho’s ability to use the inside channels will be important, too for the Red Devils.
Now, it remains to be seen whether Manchester United can put the disappointment behind them and perform commendably in their upcoming matches.
It will be a difficult job, but definitely not beyond their reach.
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / Visionhaus
Recording Date: 16.02.2025