Manchester United’s victory against PSG came after a tumultuous start to the season with questions already being raised over Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s eligibility to lead United as their manager. But the spectacular victory over last season’s Champions League finalists should give Ole some breathing room especially as the victory came after an impressive performance by United, unlike the last time they beat PSG when they rode their luck to a 3-1 victory in Paris.
United lineup in a 3-5-2 formation which was different from their usual 4-3-3/4-2-3-1 formation against PSG. The back three formation actually complimented their defenders with Telles and Wan-Bissaka performing exceedingly well in their full back roles and Tuanzebe excelling in his first appearance this season. More importantly, with McTominay and Fred returning to the midfield, it gave United the balance, stability and more importantly graft in the centre of the park. Solskjaer has had success historically while using the back three formation, for people interested in betting, they should probably check out the odds at Texas online sports betting if Solskjaer ever again decides to choose a back three formation.
The top three players to have covered the most distance in the match are the 3 of United’s midfielders which clearly shows the impact there 3 of them had on the match. With Pogba, Van De Beek or Matic on the field, this energy and selflessness is something United tend to miss. Combine this energy from midfield with the pace and trickery of Rashford and Martial, it looks like Solskjaer has just identified the right formation to get the best out of this squad.
This 3-5-2 formation allows United’s defence more protection with a 3 man defence and with attacking full backs in Telles and Wan-Bissaka. The double pivot of Fred and McTominay can compensate for their lack of ball skills with their energy and defensive nous which enables them to protect their defence better. Also, this double pivot will allow Bruno Fernandes more freedom in the final third as he can be assured that his midfield partners will be covering for him defensively.
Man United possible formation against Chelsea
We can expect Solskjaer to stick to the same formation used against PSG with one possible change being Harry Maguire coming into replace the excellent Axel Tuanzebe. The major problem with this approach and formation would be the slow build-up play if United dominate possession. The issue against teams like PSG is that their midfield dominates the ball and their defence pushed high which allows United to play to their strengths in sitting back and then hitting teams on the counter. It will be exciting to see how Chelsea approach this game as they have their own defensive liabilities.
One Response
This formation is far from “new” as Ole used it last year against top attacking teams such as Liverpool and city he won’t use it against Chelsea as they’re not a threat. Also how is martial going to start when he’s red banned for a further 2 games?
Ritesh I highly recommend a basic knowledge of football before considering journalism on the Matter