Rotating Solskjaer has 21 players to call on to ease the burden during hectic festive period
CHRISTMAS is not always the most wonderful time of the year for footballers.
Training on Christmas Day, hotel stays on Christmas night, games on Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.
The games come thick and fast, but at least this season they’ve had plenty of time to get used to it. To steal a line from Jurgen Klopp, this season October was like December, November was like December and December is still December.
Every club involved in Europe has played twice a week this season and for United, City, Arsenal and Tottenham that has continued this week with the Carabao Cup quarterfinals.
When United kick-off at Goodison Park it will signal the starting gun on a run of four games in 10 days. And if they beat the Toffees they’ll have another fixture in the first midweek of January too.
The Reds have been dealt a rough hand over Christmas. They play Everton tonight, will probably require a recovery session on Christmas Eve and will then train on Christmas Day before the overnight stay in Leicester, with that fixture the first served up on the Boxing Day menu.
For these clubs the next 10 days will be a test of squad depth and for United that’s an area that looks a lot more encouraging than it did a couple of months ago.
Against Leeds on Sunday they named a nine-man substitutes bench that included internationals from England, Brazil, France, Spain, Holland and Uruguay. Those replacements had 341 international caps between them.
On that evidence they have enough in reserve to challenge on at least a
couple of fronts this season. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has already shown his determination to rotate this season, making 35 changes in 13 Premier League games, the most in the division.
That tally will rise between now and New Year’s Day. After the trip to Everton tonight comes a second vs third Premier League clash with Leicester City. Then it’s Old Trafford meetings with Wolves and Aston Villa.
United’s emergence as potential title contenders makes those three Premier League games vital, while progress towards a first final under Solskjaer also holds significance, with a trophy a potentially crucial building block for what is a fairly young side.
So what are Solskjaer’s options when it comes to rotation? That bench against Leeds suggests he has plenty and there are probably 21 players he can call on to start in the next four games, with only Aaron Wan-Bissaka having to start all four, with competition at right-back limited.
Solskjaer can make 11 changes to face Everton and still field a very competitive side. Fred and Scott McTominay will probably be required for the two toughest Premier League fixtures, while Bruno Fernandes is indispensable in that competition, no matter what Donny van de Beek does at Goodison Park.
United also have options in attack. Juan Mata, Mason Greenwood and Edinson Cavani can all come in to the side tonight and they can make sure Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial are rested.
The festive fixtures can often be make or break.
If United can maintain an impressive run of form in the next 10 days, while also avoiding injuries, it will be a perfect present for Solskjaer.