MANCHESTER UNITED do not concede bucketloads of goals — but they have a big problem at centre-back.
Whether it’s through loss of form, injury or suspension, Jose Mourinho still doesn’t know his preferred pairing.
And that uncertainty could spell big trouble in today’s FA Cup final showdown with Chelsea.
When you think of United, you think of great centre-back partnerships — Gary Pallister and Steve Bruce, Jaap Stam and Ronny Johnsen, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic.
Phil Jones and Chris Smalling look likely to start at Wembley, although you cannot be sure.
United have used 11 different centre-back combinations in the league this season and that is far from ideal.
And it means that Nemanja Matic and other defensive midfielders become even more important for the Old Trafford outfit than for other sides.
Eric Bailly joined United from Villarreal two years ago and I really rate him — without question he is one of the two best central defenders at the club.
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Red Devils boss Mourinho says he hasn’t played the Ivory Coast international because his country are not going to the World Cup — and he wants to give chances to others ahead of the tournament in Russia, starting next month.
Well, considering the inter- national squads have now been announced there is no reason Bailly shouldn’t start today.
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A lack of consistency at the back has hurt United this season and once again they have been indebted to Spanish goalkeeper David De Gea.
It is vital to build up a partnership at the back — to learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses — and to know exactly where the other will be in any given situation.
And this lack of long-term understanding could play into Chelsea’s hands today.
The highlighted box from United’s 2-1 Premier League win over Chelsea at Old Trafford in February shows where I believe the game could be won or lost.
It shows how the hosts’ two defensive midfielders sat back to protect the two centre-backs.
That meant if Chelsea’s lone striker Alvaro Morata dropped deep he could be handed over to Matic and Scott McTominay to handle.
The defenders are therefore not dragged out of position, which would leave space in behind for Eden Hazard or Willian to exploit.
The communication between those four in the box is crucial. If it’s not up to scratch then Chelsea and Olivier Giroud could cause big problems for United.
Giroud has scored four goals in his last six league games and I think he suits the Blues’ system better than Morata. He is the one who does drop deep and drags defenders away.
Spain hitman Morata, in contrast, leads the line high up the pitch, which does not allow others to get in behind.
If Giroud does start and he begins to drop deep into those pockets of space, who is going to pick him up?
This is where it’s critical that the distance between United’s two centre-backs and two defensive midfielders is not too big.
If it is, the midfielders cannot pick up a striker dropping off as they will be too far away.
If the two centre-backs drop deep, it’s vital the holding midfielders drop deep with them.
Likewise, if they push up, it’s crucial the two defenders do too.
The gap has to be small enough so that if the centre-forward drops off, he is immediately on the two sitting midfielders.
We know United can score goals and have the players to create problems but that lack of continuity at the back means there are not two defenders who completely understand each other.
And, for this reason, the defensive midfielders become even more crucial — to compensate for United’s failure to field a settled back four all season.
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