Manchester United is one of the few clubs in the World that has the financial muscle to compete in the transfer market, even after the pandemic.
The pandemic put a halt on all footballing activities, which has resulted in clubs losing a lot of money. This has resulted in clubs being unable to pay salaries to footballers and non-footballing staff, let alone transfers.
But, clubs like Manchester United, Chelsea, Real Madrid, and PSG, are financially very strong and look to continue their pursuit of glory with better recruits.
There are a lot of players seeking a move to a bigger club this transfer window, but none more talented than Donny van de Beek. The 23-year-old Dutch midfielder is a graduate of the famous Ajax academy. He is regarded as one of the best young Dutch players of this generation and has done justice to the hype around him. Van de Beek has scored 8 and has assisted 5 goals in 23 games, this season for Ajax in the Eredivisie.
The midfielder is an integral part of the Ajax team but is now ready to take a step up in his career. Real Madrid was interested in van de Beek last season but didn’t make a move. This season they seem to have found their solution in Federico Valverde and aren’t interested to go for van de Beek anymore.
Manchester United is interested in having a midfielder, this transfer window, and van de Beek might be perfect for the Red Devils. The midfielder would be available for about $50m, which shouldn’t be a problem for United.
The Dutch maestro is a complete midfielder, who can play in different positions. He can play as an attacking midfielder and as a box-to-box midfielder, but not as a defensive midfielder.
Van de Beek is good at tackling, but his attacking side will be wasted if he plays as a defensive midfielder. United can get his services this season, as they are in the lookout of a world-class midfielder. Paul Pogba hasn’t lived up to his hype and has played only 8 games this season due to injury. United have failed to create chances from the midfield and van de Beek can be the solution for their woes.
Getting van de Beek will assure United the solidity in midfield, as well as the attacking flair in the final third. The arrival of van de Beek might be seen as a sign of things to come, as for the first time in years, the club will think ahead of time.
Paul Pogba still has his heart set at a move to Real Madrid. The French midfielder might play his last season in a United shirt in the 2019/20 or 2020/21 season. Thus, this transfer window will be the ideal time to get in van de Beek and allow him to settle down in his new club. Let us have a look at the various possibilities of how United lineup with van de Beek.
The traditional 4-4-2 could be a good idea to fit in Bruno, van de Beek, and Pogba. This system will also enable all three to play to their strengths, where Pogba and Bruno can roam about the middle of the pitch and the sides and van de Beek can play the box-to-box role.
The other midfielder has to be disciplined and good at tackles and sweeping up attacks, which makes Mctominay a great option. The full-backs will be used to provide width in this system, as neither Bruno nor Pogba are wingers, and will drift inside. Using this system United can break teams employing lower blocks with Pogba, Bruno, and van de Beek all capable of providing the final pass.
The 4-4-2 diamond formation is similar to the traditional 4-4-2, but with distinct and different tactics for players. In this formation, Pogba plays as attacking midfielder as he has less industry than van de Beek and Bruno.
Bruno and van de Beek both are allowed to roam about and play box-to-box, whereas Pogba is employed higher up the pitch. The full-backs are used to provide the necessary width and the defensive midfielder stays just in front of the centre backs to give them cover. The defensive midfielder needs to be mobile as he has to screen the space left by attacking full-backs as well. This system would be good against teams that like to have possession, as the numerical advantage in the middle of the park would help United.
The 4-2-3-1 has been Ole’s most used formation this season. But this formation would allow United to play only 2 of Pogba, van de Beek and Bruno Fernandes. Neither of them can play a defensive role, and playing without a proper defensive midfielder will cause a lot of trouble, no matter what side they play against. Van de Beek can play that role but, his positions will be limited if he plays in a double pivot with Pogba. Pogba is technically better than van de Beek but doesn’t give the team a lot, defensively. This system will be employed when either of Pogba or Bruno gets injured.
Looking towards the future, if we see Pogba leave this summer or the next summer, an ideal formation for United could be something like this. Van de Beek would be Pogba’s ideal replacement to run the midfield, and getting him this season will help him grow into the team.
The modern 4-3-3 would be great for United with Bruno and Donny in the heart of the midfield. Both can play box-to-box and are great at attacking as well as defensively. This system would replicate Zidane’s Real Madrid with a midfield of Kroos, Modric, and Casemiro, that dominated the World for 3 years consecutively. With this system United would play possession-based, attacking style football.
Which of the above formation is the ideal one? Or you have something else in mind? Drop your views in the comments below.
