Man Utd commence their European bow with a game against FC Twente. Erik ten Hag gets the chance to take on an Eredivisie team, something he is familiar with given his time with Ajax although it has been a while now.
With the games coming thick and fast, Ten Hag will have to make decisions on who is ready to play the game and who can be rotated with the Premier League clash later this weekend also set to play in his mind when it comes to team selection.
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Even if there are rotations, Ten Hag is still likely to name a strong squad. Here is how we think the Dutch manager can set his team up in a 4-2-3-1 formation as Manchester United look to get their Europa League campaign off to a winning start.
Andre Onana is likely to start in between the posts with Atlay Bayindir having to make do with a spot on the bench. In front of him, Matthijs de Ligt is expected to be given a rest.
Noussair Mazraoui, Harry Maguire, Lisandro Martinez and Diogo Dalot expected to make up the back four. Ten Hag has mentioned that Luke Shaw should be back at the end of the October international break, which is welcome news.
Alternatively, Dalot has played almost every single minute in the campaign so far and Ten Hag could choose to rotate him and deploy Lisandro Martinez at left-back, with De Ligt then set to continue. The base of the midfield is likely to consist of Manuel Ugarte partnered with Kobbie Mainoo.
Captain Bruno Fernandes is most likely set to start as the #10 on the night, flanked by Alejandro Garnacho on the left. Antony, given his Eredivisie background, could be given the chance to start from the right.
Although Rasmus Hojlund is fit and Joshua Zirkzee is available, Marcus Rashford is likely to start as the striker against Twente with the duo set to be afforded chances off the bench. Christian Eriksen who has started the previous two games, is an option for Ten Hag off the bench.
On paper, this should be a fairly straightforward win for United but the last thing Ten Hag’s side can afford is to get complacent. Let’s hope they focus and get the win over the Dutch side to make a good start to their European bow this season.
We must get rid of Ten Hag before it is too late. His selections and substitutions, show he hasn’t a clue which first 11 he is settled on. He has no plan B in games that he is losing. Get rid and get a top manager like Tuchel in.