As the international break draws to a close, Manchester United face up to their final run of games as they look to salvage something from what has been a dismal season.
The Reds have been back at Carrington this week after the latest round of international fixtures, with the players ready to resume their battle to finish in the top four. The likes of Jadon Sancho, Diogo Dalot and Aaron Wan-Bissaka were all seen in training on Wednesday ahead of the weekend’s clash with Leicester.
They’ll be joined by the club’s returning internationals soon, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes among them after helping Portugal secure their place at this year’s World Cup. There’s even an injury boost for United, with Luke Shaw making his return for England after missing the last two games for his club with Covid-19.
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With a place in the Champions League next season still up for grabs, Ralf Rangnick will have plenty of big decisions to make with his side over the coming weeks. So, in an ideal world with everyone fit, who would get into United’s best side?
Goalkeeper
This is perhaps the easiest out of all of the decisions to make. David de Gea will likely end the season as United’s player of the year, and although the Spaniard was snubbed for the latest round of international fixtures, there’s no doubt he starts ahead of Dean Henderson.
Defence
This is where things start to get a bit trickier. Raphael Varane is perhaps the only member of the back four absolutely assured of his place in the side, and who partners him at the heart of the defence is a major discussion point.
Harry Maguire is once again under the spotlight after being booed while on England duty during the week, but he still looks to be United’s best option to partner Varane. Victor Lindelof is certainly running him close, while Eric Bailly and Phil Jones are further down the pecking order.
While Alex Telles has done a decent job deputising for Shaw, the England man gets in at left-back now that he’s back to fitness. Right-back is arguably the most difficult choice, but Dalot is probably outperforming Wan-Bissaka this season, although it’s an area United need to address in the summer.
Midfield
Five names are battling it out for three positions in the middle of the park. When they’re fully fit and firing, Fernandes and Paul Pogba surely get into the side, so it’s a question of who goes in alongside them.
Given who they’re playing alongside, the third man will have to operate in a holding role, and given his recent performances, Nemanja Matic gets the nod ahead of Fred and Scott McTominay. Fred may well feel aggrieved given he has been one of the better performers recently, but Matic has looked the best option in that position – it’s just a shame he’s not a few years younger.
Forwards
The argument over Cristiano Ronaldo and his suitability for a modern system will no doubt rage on. The fact of the matter is though, at the moment, he’s the best option to lead from the front. Even in this ideal world where everyone is fit, it’s hard to imagine Edinson Cavani actually making more than a handful of appearances.
Jadon Sancho looks to have found his feet over on the left of the attacking trio. His form on that side has come at the expense of Marcus Rashford, who now finds himself vying with Anthony Elanga over on the right.
And, given their respective performances this season, it’s the latter who gets the nod. Put simply, Elanga is far outperforming Rashford at this moment in time, and given the ground United have to make up, they’re not really in the position to afford the England man time to get himself back into form.
United’s best XI: De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Maguire, Shaw; Matic, Pogba, Fernandes; Elanga, Ronaldo, Sancho.
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