UNITED Mourinho must resist endless urge to tinker
UNITED sit eighth in the Premier League and there are plenty of stats doing the rounds which make for depressing reading if you’re a United fan.
But one stat that isn’t too depressing – more alarming – emphasises one of United’s biggest problems.
When the team sheet dropped against Arsenal it was announced Jose Mourinho had made seven changes from the side that drew at Southampton, meaning he had made 46 changes in the league this season. That’s more than any other Premier League side, and we’re not even halfway through the campaign yet.
Obviously injuries are going to force any manager to make changes, and at the moment United are going through a bit of an injury crisis, so changes have been forced on the manager.
But more often than not Mourinho has been switching his pack to make a point, not just to the players but to the board as well, and he has shown he has no issue dropping players after the slightest hint of a bad performance.
Andreas Pereira’s barely been seen since the Brighton defeat and Fred couldn’t even make the squad against Arsenal. That’s a £52m player, who let’s not forget Mourinho bought, who can’t make the bench.
Mourinho’s three seasons into his reign as United manager and he still doesn’t have a set United XI – and that’s reflected in the performances.
At the start of the season it was the tinkering around at the back that was causing the biggest issue with United leaking so many goals.
But, injuries aside, Mourinho appears to be sticking with Chris Smalling and Victor Lindelof as his preferred centre-back pairing, finally a basis to start building from.
There’s absolutely no problem with managers choosing to rotate their squad in order to preserve their best players, especially with such a busy festive period approaching. But, there’s always that feeling with Mourinho that his changes aren’t about getting the best out of his team – more to prove a point.
Mourinho warned he was about to ring the chances again in his programme notes: “We have to make our weaknesses become our strengths, with real determination, pride and desire to win the match. There isn’t space for people that are not ready to give it their all.”
Cue Paul Pogba and Romelu Lukaku being benched and Fred having to settle for a seat in the directors’ box.
He did the same against Young Boys. This time it was six chances (which won’t be included in that earlier stat) and it came after criticising his players for lacking ‘desire’ and ‘heart’ in the goalless draw with Crystal Palace.
His team selections are following a familiar pattern, have a dig at players but not by name, then make drastic team selections.
If you’re Pogba or Lukaku sitting on the bench you’d be thinking the warning in the programme was aimed at you. Fair enough, some might say after their recent performances.
But the problem lies deeper than upsetting Pogba and Lukaku with some programme notes and a seat on the bench.
How’s the team meant to find any run of consistency in form when it’s a different XI playing week in, week out? We’re not talking a couple of tactical changes, Mourinho makes wholesale changes every week.
Just as he appeared to find his centre -back pairing with Smalling and Lindelof, Mourinho needs to do the same in midfield and with his front three.
A prime example is Marcus Rashford. He’s been a bright spark in the last couple of games but needs a good run of games in the same position to properly find his form.
Yet it would come as no surprise to anybody if he was forced to warm the bench for Fulham’s visit to Old Trafford tomorrow – but Mourinho needs to settle on his best XI and stick with it for the good of team.