Analysis: Three solutions to Manchester United’s striker crisis
Manchester United’s tough trip to Premier League pace-setters Chelsea in the quarter-final of the FA Cup this evening has been made even harder by a striker injury crisis at Old Trafford.
Jose Mourinho was already lamenting the absence of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who was retrospectively suspended for three games after elbowing Bournemouth’s Tyrone Mings two weekends ago, but injury has forced Wayne Rooney to the sidelines as well, whilst Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial have both been stricken down by an illness.
That leaves Mourinho without a recognised striker and facing a real dilemma of how to add some ad hoc venom to a seemingly toothless attack, as the countdown until kickoff continues. His team won’t have much time to adapt to the circumstances and neither will the man he chooses to lead the line in the absence of United’s entire strike-force.
Nonetheless, Mourinho must make a decision; we take a look at the three best options for the Red Devils gaffer.
Juan Mata
On the surface, false nines are the antithesis of the Mourinho mantra, which has nearly always utilised a powerful, old-fashioned lone centre-forward and demanded functionality in all departments. But the Portuguese called upon winger Andre Schurrle to lead the line against Manchester United during his time at Chelsea, amid injuries to Loic Remy and Diego Costa, so he’s clearly open to the idea should circumstances oblige it.
In terms of potential false nines in United’s squad, it’s hard to look past Juan Mata – not least because he’s the Red Devils’ second top scorer in the Premier League with six goals and will be chomping at the bit to put in a good performance against his former club, where he won two Player of the Year awards before moving to Old Trafford.
Likewise, Lionel Messi made the false nine role famous at Barcelona and although he may lack the Argentine’s fleeting drive on the ball, Mata’s the closest United have in style to the serial Ballon d’Or winner.
Marouane Fellaini
Marouane Fellaini may not be the most popular figure at Old Trafford but the Belgian battering ram’s awkward physicality has a knack for suiting certain games with specific circumstances and tonight’s clash certainly falls into that remit.
First and foremost, Fellaini is probably the most natural striker option now at Mourinho’s disposal through his height, power and ability to bring others into the game. In fact, Louis van Gaal utilised him as a centre-forward from the bench throughout his two years as Red Devils gaffer and David Moyes employed a similar trick whilst the duo worked together at Everton.
Furthermore, if Chelsea’s backline has one standout weakness, it’s in the air – particularly the gap between Cesar Azpilicueta and Victor Moses, who both measure in at under six foot. Spurs and Liverpool both exploited it to claim a win and a draw respectively in January – two of the last three matches the Blues have failed to win – and if Fellaini can get on the Spaniard’s shoulder, he’s got a great chance of nodding one home.
Ashley Young
Ashley Young’s Premier League career has seen him steadily move back through the departments; he was a striker at Watford, a winger at Aston Villa and has been utilised as an emergency full-back by the Red Devils over the last two seasons.
But a killer strike certainly isn’t beyond the 31-year-old, especially from the long range, and the fact he’s a naturally attacking player with experience at the spearhead gives him an advantage over the aforementioned Fellaini and Mata.
Furthermore and perhaps most importantly, Young’s status as a fringe player means placing him up top won’t affect Mourinho’s plans for the rest of the starting XI, which could well have Fellaini and Mata both involved already as United look to manoeuvre three games in the space of nine days due to their Europa League commitments.
For a player who has scored six goals in his last five seasons, however, Young will have to recover his predatory instincts fast.
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