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Manchester United were humiliated again this afternoon by arch-rivals Liverpool.
There were few players who could hold their head up high for the Red Devils, with many blaming midfielder Casemiro and manager Erik ten Hag in equal measure.
Among the “not so bad” performers once again was youngster Kobbie Mainoo, Casemiro’s midfield partner.
Mainoo has been sensational since he broke into the first team in late 2023 and is surely now the first name on the teamsheet.
Casemiro’s days, sadly, look numbered after the false dawn of a decent opening Premier League performance this season against Fulham. United have completed the signing of his natural successor, Manuel Ugarte, who should be available for the side’s next match against Southampton in two weeks’ time.
However, there is a sense among the fanbase that Ugarte alone will not fix the huge problem that is how easily United’s midfield is overrun.
So, if Mainoo is as talented as everyone says he is and Ugarte is like Casemiro on steroids, why the pessimism that things won’t get better?
The issue lies in the system employed by Erik ten Hag, a tactical faux-pas that creates a vacuum right in the centre of the park.
The fact is that brilliant as he is, Mainoo is not an elite passer of the ball, and Ugarte certainly is not either.
Ten Hag wants his full backs inverted to create an extra man in midfield, allowing the number 10, Bruno Fernandes, to stay further forward up the pitch. However, none of United’s full backs are exactly Paul Scholes when it comes to their range of passing.
Ten Hag’s tactics seem to simply be to roll it out to the wings and for the winger, and/or the overlapping or underlapping full back, to create the chances for the strikers to knock in.
This makes it very easy for the opposition managers, who often deploy double markers on United’s wingers, knowing that there is little threat to come from anywhere else.
As a result, Fernandes often gets drawn out wide to help develop the attack, as can be seen from his recent heatmaps, but this then means that there are not sufficient bodies in and around the box to get on the end of any crosses that do eventually arrive.
There is a huge gap between the attacking four and the midfield two and this will not be rectified by Ugarte’s arrival.
United simply need better passers deeper in midfield.
Ten Hag’s United were at their best when Christian Eriksen partnered Casemiro, and that was just as much because of the Dane as it was the then-excellent Brazilian.
With neat, tidy, progressive Mainoo, there also needs to be someone with that kind of passing range in and around the centre circle so that not every attack begins on the wings.
This was so evident against Liverpool today, when United’s passing was embarrassing at times and the midfield overrun as a result.
Ten Hag needs either to revert to a 4-3-3, pulling Fernandes deeper back into midfield to provide that passing range, or to redeploy Mainoo as a six and play him alongside a deep lying playmaker such as Eriksen, or even Fernandes himself, with Mason Mount or Joshua Zirkzee replacing him in the 10.
United have many issues but this basic tactical one is so obvious, it beggars belief that Ten Hag has not addressed it by now.
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2024-09-01 17:56:06
