Playing for your futures
The nature of Manchester United's complete collapse in Seville on Thursday night will have put some players on notice that the end of their time at Old Trafford is approaching.
Erik ten Hag was furious with his team's display in the Europa League quarter-final second leg and the way they were outthought and outfought was particularly damning. As injuries began to bite, United's B-listers showed they don't have long left at the party.
The United manager would like to go on another recruitment spree this summer, but funds are limited as the club continue to walk a tightrope when it comes to financial fair play rules. How much Ten Hag can spend will partly depend on how much can be raised in sales.
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There is now a maximum of 10 games left for United this season and for some of this squad, they need to make them count to avoid being placed on the transfer list. David de Gea could leave on a free, but he must be under pressure now. Harry Maguire is suspended for this game, but could also leave.
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Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof, Fred and Anthony Martial could all be sold. Three of that quartet started in Seville and Fred rarely gets a look in these days. Jadon Sancho also needs to up his game.
There is an FA Cup final to look forward to for the victor at Wembley today, but for some United players, the prize is even greater than that.
Defensive reshuffle
With Maguire suspended and Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez still injured, United are down to the bare bones in central defence. That will probably mean Luke Shaw coming in at centre-back to replace the club captain, which after Thursday night might not be such a bad move.
But Shaw will operate on the left, with Lindelof bumped across to the right, so it will involve two positional changes. There might also have to be alterations at full-back, given Aaron Wan-Bissaka's poor 45 minutes in Seville and Diogo Dalot's form at the moment. Starting both would appear a risk, so Tyrell Malacia might well be back.
It's not inconceivable that Ten Hag picks a back four that involves all four players either coming into the team or changing position from the Sevilla game, which is far from ideal preparation.
Midfield scouting mission
Of all the areas Ten Hag needs to strengthen this summer, midfield isn't near the top of the list, but a younger, more dynamic option would certainly be attractive to the Dutchman.
Fitting that bill are two Brighton players who will attract interest from plenty of the Premier League's biggest clubs this summer. United nearly signed Moises Caicedo before the Ecuadorian moved to the Seagulls in 2021. At the Amex he has emerged as one of the hottest prospects in the league and was close to a January move to Arsenal.
Alexis Mac Allister is another whose reputation has rocketed this season, starring in Argentina's World Cup triumph in Qatar and proving himself as a versatile midfielder in the Premier League. As a world champion, he could be in demand this summer.
Brighton will fear losing the 21-year-old Caicedo and Mac Allister, 24, but they are such a well-run club that replacements will already be lined up. United would take either of Brighton's current midfield stars, but maybe their eyes should be on who comes next as well.
Attacking options
The sight of Antony Martial limping away from a United match was hardly an unfamiliar one in Seville. After a run of six games that he's been involved in the striker could yet be absent with a sixth different fitness issue this season.
That could mean a start through the middle for Marcus Rashford, who returned with a 45-minute outing against Sevilla, or Wout Weghorst being elevated back into the starting XI. Weghorst's goals might be almost non-existent, but his pressing could at least be useful against Brighton.
The other reason that might be appealing is that Jadon Sancho must be under pressure for his own place. His first-half display on Thursday was tepid and ineffectual and that's happening too often at the moment. He doesn't deserve to be in the team at the moment.
A tactical minefield
The approach of Roberto De Zerbi during his time as manager of Sassuolo in Serie A was eye-catching and won plenty of plaudits, but his achievements were coming with a fairly unfashionable Serie A side and amounted to some impressive results and a watchable style of play, so his stock barely rose unless people were paying close attention.
Brighton certainly were and now De Zerbi is on the radar of plenty of clubs. The Italian's philosophy is seen as genuinely unique in the game and when Pep Guardiola labelled Brighton as "the best in the world" in build-up play last week, it wasn't just another round of hyperbole from the City manager, bigging up a team he is about to dismantle.
De Zerbi's style revolves around his goalkeeper and defenders keeping the ball until they finally force teams to overcommit, giving them space to quickly play through the spaces afforded. It is bold and it is brave. Often they will play back right to their own goalline to attract opponents on, before springing into life.
They also play without a spearhead in attack, often getting Mac Allister and one of Danny Welbeck or Evan Ferguson to play as No. 10s, while the wingers - Karou Mitoma and Solly March, usually - sprint in behind from wide starting positions. It can give central defenders nobody to mark and cause overloads in midfield.
That would make it a risk for United to go with the midfield man-marking approach often favoured by Ten Hag. It's a conundrum he must solve on the back of just a couple of training sessions, while Brighton have had the whole week to prepare.
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