You heard Manchester United Executive Vice Chairman Ed Woodward state his goal this morning: “a top three finish.” So “watch this space” to see if United are truly on this “great adventure” that Sir Bobby Charlton says they are. The question now is how does Louis van Gaal fit everyone in? Does he abandon his 3-5-2 formation?
Does he switch to a 4-3-1-2? Who’s left out?
Their new line-up goes as follows:
FALCAO VAN PERSIE
ROONEY
DI MARIA BLIND HERRERA
SHAW ROJO EVANS RAFAEL
DE GEA
You’ll notice a huge name missing from the starting XI; that of Juan Mata. He broke the club record when he signed in January of 2013, with a £37m transfer fee. Obviously Di Maria dwarfed that, by smashing the British transfer record with a £59.7m. Here’s a link to a graphical representation of what LVG could do with his side, via ESPN FC.
And this totally different combination was their projected lineup after the first four signings were made, but before Blind and Falcao were added.
Now contrast that with the lineup Stevie Nichol of ESPN FC came up with once the summer transfer window ended and the international break began. You’ll see it’s different from the other combinations we’ve linked to. Also, compare and contrast with ESPN FC starting XI from the preseason in August.
Of course, feel free to post your own Manchester United starting XI in the comment section below, as well as give your thoughts on the potential line-ups presented to you already.
Paul M. Banks owns, edits and manages The Sports Bank.net, which is partners with Fox Sports and Yahoo. Read his feature stories in the Chicago Tribune RedEye edition. Listen to him Tuesdays on KOZN 1620 The Zone. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)