How Blues could inflict more pain on under-fire Ole
A MONUMENTAL game of football took place in Manchester on Sunday afternoon.
As Pep Guardiola rested with three points already in the bag having beaten Brighton on Saturday by four goals to one, United faced Liverpool and lost 5-0.
Despite the heavy defeat, it seems Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will remain in charge for the weekend bout against Tottenham Hotspur.
One week after, United are due to face City.
Solskjaer has generally delivered respectable results against Guardiola through the use of counter-attacks, but the approach that he used against Liverpool would leave him open to the primary strengths of City.
Speaking before Sunday’s game, Solskjaer said that his players had to be ‘on the front foot’ from the beginning; after the match, he talked about how United should always ‘stamp their authority on the game’ when playing at home. His instructions resulted in his players pressing Liverpool as individuals rather than as one cohesive unit, allowing Jurgen Klopp’s side to progress up the field by passing through open spaces with ease.
The story would be similar if Solskjaer adopted the same tactics against City, with Guardiola particularly likely to inflict major problems upon United’s midfield.
The striker-less system that he’s formulated at City allows his team to gain total control over matches, with Phil Foden and Jack Grealish taking turns to operate as his central presence in recent weeks.
No fixed striker is deployed at the
Etihad but instead, Guardiola is essentially able to field a team of creators, each of whom are suited to keeping the ball, playing in tight spaces and generating scoring opportunities.
United encountered specific issues associated with their midfield department against Liverpool, with Fred and Scott McTominay dragged all over the pitch as a consequence of the movement of Klopp’s players.
As Solskjaer’s four forwards remained high up the field, Liverpool used the pockets of space surrounding Fred and McTominay, and Guardiola has the make-up within his striker-less system to do the same.
It is reasonable to suggest that City could execute such a plan to an even higher level given the technical ability of Guardiola’s midfield players in comparison to Liverpool.
It remains to be seen whether Solskjaer will last long enough at United to take charge against City but if he does, Guardiola is arguably the worst possible opponent that he could face.