Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made quite a few changes ahead of the 2019-20 season, bringing in two quality defenders in Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Harry Maguire, while also selling players who were deemed unfit for his system, or those that were not good enough to contribute to the team.
The Red Devils manager has also adopted a new system, a 4-2-3-1 formation, which is a departure from the 4-3-3 and 4-3-1-2 formation that he used last season.
In his current system, two holding midfielders play ahead of a No. 10, while two wide players add width to the team’s play.
The No. 10 is possibly the most important player in the system as he will be required to pass the ball to the wide players and striker, control the tempo of the game, while also retaining the ball so as to not lose the ball in key areas of the pitch. The attacking midfielder will also have to drift into wide areas when the winger moves infield, and also provide support to the striker when there are not many players in the box.
The attacking midfielder will have to be the point through which all attacks take place, which means that the player has to be technically good, has the vision to pass and make runs, while also pressing the opposition and helping out the midfielders while defending.
Manchester United need a top number 10 for the system to thrive
This season, Solskjaer has used Jesse Lingard in the No. 10 role, who has not had a great 2019 on the pitch, having not scored or assisted in the entire year.
Lingard has lost the ball on several occasions this season, while also not having enough touches to build attacks. Take, for example, the game against Crystal Palace – the Englishman touched the ball only 30 times before he was withdrawn in the 56th minute, while he lost the ball on four occasions, and completed just 20 passes.
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Juan Mata replaced him against Southampton, and while Mata was good with the ball, not losing it even once in the 86 minutes he played in the match, he had just one shot on goal, and did not have enough possession of the ball.
Manchester United need a quick attacking midfielder who can make runs with the ball, make key passes to the forwards, and also chip in with a few goals.
Leicester City’s 22-year-old attacking midfielder, James Maddison, is one player that some United fans want to see at Old Trafford in the No. 10 role, as the Englishman has impressed over the last year at the Foxes.
In Leicester’s last game against Bournemouth, Maddison completed 42 passes in the game and had 61 touches of the ball, linking the midfield with the attack, and helping the team to a 3-1 win. Maddison is young, technically gifted, and has the vision to pick out passes.
Solskjaer needs a player like the Leicester attacking midfielder for his system to work, as the No. 10 role is currently a big problem for the Red Devils.
