If Ole’s team lose to Chelsea, all the old questions will return
AFTER defeat against Paris Saint-Germain, tomorrow night’s FA Cup tie against Chelesa is big for Manchester United. I don’t necessarily mean for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his prospects of getting the manager’s job full-time, but for the players.
They have been on a great run since Jose Mourinho left but two defeats in a row against elite opposition would see the old questions resurface — is the manager really the problem or are the squad just not good enough.
I watched the PSG game with interest and there was one glaring weakness with United. They don’t have anyone in midfield who can dictate the tempo as Michael Carrick used to.
PSG did have that player, Marco Verratti, on Tuesday night. I’ve been a big fan of his for years and he showed what United are desperately crying out for.
He’s so clever on the ball. He can slow the game down, or speed it up, according to his team’s need.
Nemanja Matic does the destructive side of the midfield job very well but he’s no Carrick — or even Fernandinho, who is so important for Manchester City.
Yes, Paul Pogba could do it, but why would you want to restrict him as a holding midfielder when he can cause problems in the final third? At the moment, they are using Matic and Ander Herrera together in order to give Pogba freedom in a 4-3-3, but they are not as well-balanced a pair as Verratti-Marquinhos were for PSG. The right players aren’t easy to find. The next generation are showing promise and I’ll keep a close eye on Harry Winks and Declan Rice. They both look like they have the technical ability and Winks is getting useful experience in big games. Is Rice a future Manchester United player? He’s physically strong and only just turned 20, so let’s see. United’s attacking players are always capable of scoring goals and might do so at Chelsea tomorrow night. But in these big games, control of midfield is often the key. What a shame for Solskjaer that Carrick, the guy sitting next to him in the dug-out at Stamford Bridge, doesn’t put on his boots any more.
RASHFORD OR LUKAKU?
SOME people say competition for places is always healthy. I don’t think that’s necessarily true — you need a spine of the team you can trust. Harry Kane is a great example at Tottenham. He’s known for years that he is sure to play; doesn’t have the pressure of sitting on the bench if he misses a chance and flourished as a result.
Think of the spine of Jose Mourinho’s great Chelsea team — Petr Cech, John Terry, Claude Makelele, Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba. Were they successful because they were pushed by an understudy? Of course not.
It brings me to the dilemma United are going to face over the next few months — Marcus Rashford versus Romelu Lukaku. I wouldn’t be surprised if Lukaku is sold in the summer because I don’t think Rashford is going anywhere and the Belgian may be happy to go somewhere where he’s the main man again.
Ironically, Solskjaer may have to start with both against Chelsea because of injuries to Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard. But even if they click together against Chelsea, that partnership may not have a long-term future. Lukaku won’t have given up yet. You don’t become a £75million striker and score the amount of Premier League goals he has without huge self-belief. He’ll see this game as an opportunity to show he is the Manchester United No 9.
But my personal view is that Rashford is going to be hard to shift and United may end up looking for someone else to help him out. Lukaku will have admirers and it may make financial sense for United to get him off the wage bill. The Belgian is good enough to be a massive hit at a big club. I just feel he won’t get that chance at United.
SARRI’S PIVOTAL GAME
MORE than the results, the manner of Chelsea’s defeats have put Maurizio Sarri under pressure. Losing to Bournemouth and Manchester City is not a sackable offence but to concede 10 goals in those two games is alarming.
This FA Cup tie against United is massive in the context of Chelsea’s season — particularly as they have a Wembley cup final against City next weekend.
To be honest, if Chelsea lose to United in the FA Cup, I can’t see them bouncing back to beat City in the Carabao Cup final. The feelgood factor is so important in football and that’s why tomorrow is huge. Beat United with a good performance and Chelsea then go to Wembley with a spring in their step — when players such as Eden Hazard are at their most dangerous. It’s been a rollercoaster ride for Sarri in his first season in England but I haven’t got too much sympathy. He knew what he was signing up to at Chelsea and they’ve given him two players he wanted — Jorginho and Gonzalo Higuain.
It’s up to Sarri how to fit the jigsaw pieces together. Otherwise, we know what usually happens to Chelsea managers.