Five at the back?
With the Liverpool debacle from October still relatively fresh in the memory, Ralf Rangnick might prefer to use a risk-averse approach when Manchester United visit Anfield on Tuesday night. The game has the potential to be an absolute mauling.
Rangnick used 4-2-2-2 across his first few games in charge as interim manager, but he's since regularly used 4-3-3. United are without Scott McTominay and Fred, which meant their midfield three of Bruno Fernandes, Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard was severely unbalanced on Saturday. Norwich have scored the fewest goals in the league and they looked dangerous throughout.
Although Nemanja Matic should return to the starting line up, the Serbian's presence alone won't be enough to thwart Liverpool's world-class forwards - they scored three goals against Manchester City at Wembley at the weekend.
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Rangnick might play five at the back instead to prioritise defensive soundness. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer used the formation to good effect in some of the biggest games during his tenure and it could be the key to managing the chances Liverpool are able to create.
Full-back switch?
United's defence was dreadful against the league's bottom side so the prospect of them coming up against this Liverpool attack is quite daunting. Alex Telles was the biggest culprit with his dreadful position costing two goals and could have led to more.
Injuries do limit Rangnick's options but he does have one potential ploy he could use to take the Brazilian out of the side. Diogo Dalot switched from right to left-back late on against the Canaries and applied himself well.
Perhaps the Portuguese could start on the left from the start with Aaron Wan-Bissaka coming in on the right, though granted, he isn't in the best form either.
Matic swansong
Matic has confirmed he's leaving United at the end of the season and this could be his swansong.
Matic will almost certainly play again after Tuesday night's match, but in terms of magnitude and rivalry, fixtures really don't get any bigger than this. Matic should be one of the first names on the team sheet alongside David de Gea at Anfield.
The midfielder's contribution is often underrated and he remains the only true defensive midfielder at the club. Matic is 33-years-old and that's a damning indictment of United's recruitment policy over the last few years.
Fernandes' challenge
Bruno Fernandes was mostly anonymous against Norwich - he worked hard but offered little quality - and he's got a score to settle in this match. That's because the midfielder has often been accused of going missing in games against elite opposition.
If United are to leave Anfield with a result, Fernandes playing at the top of his game is non-negotiable.
The potential game-changer
Rangnick has warned Rashford must 'show up' in games and the player might have to do that from the bench against Liverpool.
Although Rashford has looked like a shadow of his previous self again this season and he's struggled to impact games, his record against Liverpool might provide a degree of encouragement that he could be the game-changer from the bench.
Rashford has scored five goals in 12 games against Liverpool and he only enjoys playing Leicester more, having scored six goals in 14 appearances against the Foxes. Finding the back of the net against Liverpool would be a serious confidence booster.
This piece was submitted before news of the tragic death of Cristiano Ronaldo's newborn son and, at the time of writing, there is no word on Ronaldo's availability or possible compassionate leave. All at MEN send our condolences to Ronaldo, his girlfriend Georgina Rodriguez and their family.
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