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Manchester United face Arsenal in their first game on their pre-season tour to the USA. While it is “just a friendly”, manager Erik ten Hag has already stressed the importance of winning every game so United will undoubtedly approach it with professionalism.
Mikel Arteta’s side gave United a lot of problems last season, even in defeat at Old Trafford. No armed with new talent worth nearly €250 million, the challenge has only grown more stern.
Having said that, Ten Hag will have some tactical tweaks of his own up his sleeve. Therefore, this game should be an exciting tactical affair despite being friendly.
Here are some key battles and tactical trends to watch out for in the game from United’s POV-
How does the build-up change?
Ten Hag was keen to stress that playing out from the back is an essential characteristic in modern keepers, which is why the signing of Andre Onana is so important.
United often went long last season, especially against teams with a ferocious press. This was done due to David de Gea’s lack of ball-playing skills, often putting his own defenders in trouble with mishit or wayward passes.
The change with Onana should be immediate and interesting to note.
The internationals are back so Lisandro Martinez can renew his acquaintance with the Cameroonian from their time at Ajax. Raphael Varane is also capable with the ball.
Arsenal are the best opponents to see the transition in action as they press with five players in a 3-2-5. In Luke Shaw, Varane, Martinez, and Onana, United now have four players to cut through the press and create chances beyond the first line of press.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka is likely to be the pressing trigger in that case but all he needs to do now is pass to one of the four options, a far cry from the time when De Gea was where buildup went to die.
The midfield balance
What United needed last season is a midfielder with the on-ball skills of Christian Eriksen and the industriousness and athleticism of Fred. Ten Hag had to compromise on one skill based on the opponent and it sometimes led to chastening defeats.
In Mason Mount, he now has that player. The Englishman has already been acting as the ball carrier from deep, taking the ball from the defenders and beating the press to play it forward. It was why Ten Hag was so intent on Frenkie de Jong.
Mount is not as good as De Jong at progressive carries, but he is much better at doing Fred’s work.
With Casemiro providing the defensive shield and underrated passing skills, and Bruno Fernandes buzzing about, United’s midfield finally looks balanced- A destroyer with passing skills (Casemiro), a safe ball player who can beat the press but also not afraid to put in a tackle (Mount), and a chance creator with a high-risk high reward game (Fernandes).
Is False Nine a viable alternative?
In the most curious tactical trend of this pre-season so far, Ten Hag has opted to go with a fluid front-four with a false 9, generally Jadon Sancho.
In theory, it makes a lot of sense. United have a lot of nifty attackers who are able dribblers with good control in tight spaces. It was particularly thrilling to see Antony, Amad, and Hannibal dovetail with Sancho against Lyon.
However, the lack of finishing ability in either of those four led to a deja vu for fans. United created numerous chances last season as well but barring Rashford, nobody looked clinical.
Ten Hag will have seen enough to consider this as an alternative to the usual attacking setup, but this doesn’t look like a long-term solution. The club recognises this and is going all guns blazing for Rasmus Hojlund, a more conventional striker.
It will hurt Sancho’s prospects the most, as he has failed to give Ten Hag a headache with convincing performances as a False 9.
