Erik ten Hag has ripped up the rule book. For years at Manchester United, it was presumed a two-man defensive midfield pivot was needed in front of the back four, but no longer.
It seemed even Ten Hag himself believed that platitude when picking his first competitive line-up as United manager. Like Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick before him, the Dutchman — largely due to a lack of other options, amid the frustrating Frenkie de Jong transfer chase — plumped for a predictable midfield pairing.
Scott McTominay and Fred. Together the duo known colloquially as 'McFred' have often been unfairly maligned, though they didn't cover themselves in glory in that 2-1 defeat to Brighton at Old Trafford on the opening day.
