picture via medium.com
With Manchester United closing in on the signature of Jadon Sancho, some are speculating where the right/central-attacking midfielder will fit into the team. With players like Mason Greenwood, Bruno Fernandes, and even Daniel James all performing admirably in those positions, the signing of Sancho could drastically change the lineup next season. In today’s post, we are going to go through the two options that Manchester United has to maximize the use of Sancho while still getting the most out of the players they already have.
Switching the Formation
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s most successful lineup over the past couple of seasons has been when he comes out in a 4-2-3-1 formation. However, with the signing of Jadon Sancho, who with undoubtedly be a starter when he arrives at Old Trafford, this could leave a player out. Considering Sancho’s natural positions are either right or central-attacking midfielder, this would put Mason Greenwood and Bruno Fernandes’s places some competition. Now, should Ole chose to switch up his formation to accommodate all his star attacking players, then it would have to look a bit like this.
Playing Sancho, Greenwood, and Fernandes would see United playing a 4-1-3-2. This formation would sacrifice a defensive midfield spot and add a second striker up top filled by Greenwood. With United’s defensive track record over the past few seasons, it could be unwise to remove a player who is back when the opposing team attacks. The only other way Manchester United could play all their star players and retain a sharper defensive shape would be to run a 4-1-4-1.
This formation would have Jadon Sancho dropping into the center alongside Fernandes and Greenwood returning to the right midfield position we are used to seeing him in. A lineup like this would allow United to have players drop back on defensive situations while not ruling out the massive counterattacks that they are known for. The formation would again sacrifice a defensive midfield position meaning players like Paul Pogba, Fred, Nemanja Matic, and Scott McTominay would all be competing for minutes in one spot. Accommodating all the big names at Manchester United will be a hard task. However, United are known for star-studded in the past, and fitting them all in one lineup this year will not be the first time a United manager has had to do it.
Squad Rotation
As I stated before, the signing of Sancho would give Manchester United a star-studded lineup. Again this would not be the first time that the manager would have to rotate in big names off the bench. If Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is to keep his current system, Sancho and Greenwood will have to split time for the right side spot. Ole has done well to rotate in players, especially when it comes to the youth players. This could also mean the loaning or selling of players that United do not need anymore. Players like Jesse Lingard, Diego Dalot, and Alexis Sanchez, to name a few. These players eat up money and time that could be used to make the lineup easier to manage for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Selling players will also provide the funds to pay for more reinforcements and improvements for the club in the coming seasons.
United can return to the high standard they had back in the days of Sir Alex Fergusen. Signing a player like Jadon Sancho is a good sign that the club has a positive motion in mind. Sancho will provide Manchester United with one more attacking spark, very similar to what we saw in January with Bruno Fernandes. Many say that United have the potential to win a Premier League title and compete for other significant trophies in the next few years. Now, with the signing of arguably the best right midfielder in the world, the Red Devils have a clear path to be one of the best teams in the world once again.
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