Manchester United have made their first signing of the summer transfer window, and it is Brazilian versatile forward Matheus Cunha from fellow Premier League side Wolves. The former Atletico Madrid striker is not your traditional number nine; he is more of a creative forward option that has the capacity to play different roles along the offensive zones.
The fact that the Manchester Reds have added him to the roster as Carrington will help Amorim to put some diversity into his offensive line while offering a commendable alternative to the likes of Rasmus Højlund and Jousha Zirkzee.
Basics of what United supporters can expect of Cunha
The fact that Cunha has that capacity to drop back and connect the play while drawing the defenders out of their position and freeing space for runners behind the channels is a massive addition to the current roster and can help the likes of Bruno Fernandes and Amad Diallo. Speaking about Bruno, Cunha can combine with the Portuguese and the wide forwards to create overloads in the middle zones.
The Brazilian also brings high pressing abilities given his work rate, which slots seamlessly into the games where Ruben Amorim wants to deploy an aggressive press. But Matheus Cunha is more than your traditional number nine (as we have already established); his movements are quite intelligent, especially when he is making those diagonal runs, and he is good at drawing the defenders with him to create channels for his teammates. And given his versatility, you can play him as a lone striker, second forward in a 3-5-2, or even wide if needed.
Setup 1 – Cunha as a False 9 in a 3-4-3 / 3-4-2-1
The Brazilian leads the line here, but then he drops back into the middle zones to link up with the likes of Bruno (who would possibly be in half spaces), and then your wingbacks in Destiny Udogie and Diogo Dalot bring those underlapping and wide runs.
The midfield double pivot of possibly Mainoo-Ugarte ensures defensive cover and ball progression. And to balance it off, the back three bring some sort of stability in defence which allows the full-backs to stay involved in more offensive sequences.
Setup 2: Cunha alongside Hojlund in a 3-4-3 / 3-4-2-1
Here the former Atletico Madrid forward will play in a more left-sided role very reminiscent of how he complemented Strand Hugo Larson at Wolves last season. Hojlund leads the line as your more physical striker. This formation (based on the game setup as well) can turn into a 3-5-2, bringing a more dynamic striking duo where one drops and the other stretches defences.
Cunha (in this setup) will have a freer role to get into shooting zones and drive from outside inwards.
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Author Opinion
Bringing in Matheus Cunha shows that the Manchester Reds are making advanced efforts to bring in some sort of flow to the current attacking style while adding more dimensions to it, given how the Brazilian brings a sense of creativity and technical prowess along with his tactical intelligence. United have lacked a forward for a long time who does more than just scoring goals; he brings vision and does link up the midfield and attack, while generating space for other forwards, and can also end up playing different roles depending on how opponents are setups (low-block or high-pressing).