Thomas Hein
Manchester United can’t stay stuck up with the loss against Manchester City as they prepare for their first Europa League game. The Red Devils will be up against Feyenoord and they will have to perform better than how they did on Saturday.
There have been a lot of questions about how the team played under Jose Mourinho against City and United would like to provide a statement of intent against the Eredivisie side. Jose Mourinho did have a go at his players for not performing in the derby but the same mistake will not be repeated.
The Europa League might not be the competition which has a high priority for the club. However, winning the competition will provide automatic qualification for next season’s UEFA Champions League.
Manchester United do have a large squad to deal with this extra competition and here are the changes that Mourinho should make for this game against Feyenoord.
Some big names to be dropped
The Red Devils did start with a pretty good XI against Manchester City but Paul Pogba was below par and so was Marouane Fellaini. The duo should be “rested” for the game against Feyenoord and the likes of Ander Herrera and Morgan Schneiderlin should be given a chance to perform.
Herrera would be raring to play for United, given his limited playing time for the club. Also, Schneiderlin would want to show that he is the man who should be the defensive midfielder for Jose Mourinho.
While the midfield was one of the flat spots in the last game, the forward line does need a rejig as well. Marcus Rashford was lively when he came on in the second half for Jesse Lingard. And United should start with the young English forward in place of Lingard.
Well, Rashford and Anthony Martial deserve a chance to show what they can do. Their pace will be crucial to Manchester United’s chances and it was a surprise why Martial was not played in the derby until the last 10 minutes.
This would mean that the likes of Wayne Rooney and Zlatan Ibrahimovic are given a break but both players cannot play two games in a week. Another player whose performance was questioned was Henrikh Mkhitaryan. The Armenian was guilty of giving the ball away many times but should be given a chance to show that he can make amends.
The former Borussia Dortmund star would be the one playing centrally while Juan Mata, who missed the derby, should be the one playing on the right side of attack. The team might look a little disjointed but each player in the attack would have a point to prove.
The midfielders also would want to highlight how good they are for United. This driving force of proving their ability is exactly what Mourinho would want as he looks forward to his first European game with the Red Devils.
