It’s Manchester United starting XI prediction time again as the Red Devils’ summer acquisitions will end with the signing of Paul Pogba. He is of course at United’s Carrington training ground today to complete his transfer move, a deal that will break the world transfer fee record.
You’ll recall Jose Mourinho previously saying that his summer transfer buys are 75% complete, with just one midfielder buy remaining. Then comes the clear out, but we already covered that at this link. In other words, this is the team United will field this season, and by our best guesses, it’s the best in the Premier League on paper. We have picked them to win the league.
What lineup will Mourinho might go with once he has Pogba both in the fold and at match fitness?
Here’s our best guess.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Anthony Martial Wayne Rooney Henrik Mkhitaryan
Paul Pogba Ander Herrera
Luke Shaw Eric Bailly Chris Smalling Matteo Darmian
David de Gea
Marcus Rashford is obviously a super sub, having seen his position usurped by Ibra. Here’s a link to what Rashford had to say about his playing time situation. A recent ranking/study/poll named him the 7th most valuable U21 player in the world.
High praise!
You can obviously make a case that Morgan Schneiderlin, Juan Mata and team vice-captain Michael Carrick could be starters as well.
Of course, no one expects Mata to be a first-teamer, and many believe he won’t be much of a factor now going forward. Those are sensical beliefs given how much Mourinho benched him when the two worked together at Chelsea. At first glance, this team seems to be strongest in attack, weakest in defense and the deepest at midfield.
As strong as they are, this team has some real issues in the back line,
As always, feel free to post your own Man United starting XI projection in the comments section below. And of course speak your mind on the formations and Man United starting XI predictions that you’ve already seen online.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes regularly to the Chicago Tribune’s RedEye publication and Bold Global.
He also consistently appears on numerous talk shows all across the country. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram