Manchester United FC face Brighton and Hove Albion this weekend in the Premier League as the Red Devils look for their second win. United have lost their first game in the league against Crystal Palace and will look to bounce back against Brighton. Solskjaer will have almost the entire squad at his disposal with players having game-time under their belt.
The players looked rusty against the Eagles but with one more week of training, the players will be expected to look fresh. The likes of Pogba, Martial and Bruno Fernandes would be fresh and are expected to play much better than they did last weekend. With all the players training well, this weekend we have a lot of chance to see the United side that started after the restart.
Let us have a look at how Manchester United might lineup against Brighton and Hove Albion this weekend in the Premier League.
THE 4-2-3-1
It is expected of Eric Bailly to replace Lindelof after his dismal performance against Crystal Palace last weekend. The Ivorian played well against Luton Town as he looks fit and has a huge chance to shine beside Maguire. Matic and Greenwood are also expected to be back to the starting XI as both the players had a good run-in against Luton Town.
With Matic anchoring the midfield, Pogba will be expected to play further up the pitch, almost alongside Fernandes. The Serbian midfielder gives Pogba the freedom to bomb forward and create chances upfront.
Wan Bissaka played against Luton and looked fit and will surely start against Brighton and will give United more than what Fosu-Mensah provided. The likes of Martial and Rashford will be expected to be amongst the goals in the weekend as United are expecting their first win in the Premier League season.
THE 4-3-3
This team and this formation look very familiar to how Manchester United finished the game against Crystal Palace last weekend. With Matic as the pivot, United will surely have more chances of creating more chances going forward. Van de Beek looked very sharp against Luton Town and his runs can be picked out by Bruno which will be lethal to the opposition.
Van de Beek and Fernandes both are full of running and thus the Dutch international will be a better option than Pogba in a 4-3-3. Also, Ole might be tempted to select Van de Beek sighting his good performances and Pogba’s poor game last weekend. But the Red Devils have to very careful of Brighton’s pace upfront with Maupay and thus Bailly should be included in the starting XI to stop Maupay.
THE 3-5-2
Though Ole hasn’t used this formation a lot earlier, using it against Brighton is a chance as they use the same system. To counter Brighton’s system, Solskjaer might be tempted to use the 3-5-2 formation as United have better players than Brighton, arguably at every position. In such a system, Matic and Van de Beek will be the key to United’s success, because if United win the midfield battle, they will have an upper hand in the game.
But it is still unlikely for the United boss to use this system as he uses it only in big games.
