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Should Manchester United Do The Unthinkable If They Fail To Finish Outside The Top Four

Louis Van Gaal

Well, it was a disappointing performance for Manchester United when they visited Upton Park and escaped with a draw after Daley Blind equalized against an impressive West Ham United side. Manchester United have been wobbly this season, getting the results due to sheer quality of the players in the team, but barely resembling the side that won the league a couple of seasons ago. There hasn’t been much chemistry between the big names in the team and the tactics used by van Gaal have been questioned in recent times. They have maintained solidity in their team as they have been hard to beat, but performance wise, they are in a spot of bother as they see Tottenham Hotspur in great form coming into the final 14 games and Arsenal not far behind as well. Will that top four spot slip? And what would happen if Man Utd finish outside of the Champions League spots at the end of this season?

In Louis van Gaal, Man Utd found a manager who was ready to lead the team to the top four spots with his philosophical style of management and so far, it has been yielding results, if not quality. But if United slip up in the final stages of the Premier League, it would be hard to envisage van Gaal keeping his job as the manager. United haven’t lived up to the standard of expectation people had since they spent around 150m pounds in the summer transfer window signing big name marquee players to boost their squad. If Moyes was ousted for not being able to make the top four, van Gaal is likely to face the same action if he does the same.

Questionable tactics?

Van Gaal has been criticized for using players in wrong positions. Wayne Rooney, best suited up front with another striker, has been playing in central midfield. Angel Di Maria, best suited in attacking midfield centrally or wide, has been made to play as a strike partner to van Persie. There have been instances of over-trusting Robin van Persie, who has not been at his usual best as age is catching up, while Falcao has been a huge disappointment due to lack of fitness and goals.

There have been even more abysmal performances offensively when Falcao and van Persie have been played up front. Both being traditional out and out strikers found the going extremely tough while trying to combine with each other. Falcao and Van Persie cancel each other out with their movement, making Man Utd’s play in the offensive third very predictable. Despite their world class abilities as finishers, both Van Persie and Falcao aren’t that good playing a supporter role- presumably because van Persie has lost his quickness and energy due to age while Falcao has been a target man all his life. It looked as if Man United were hell bent in playing all their superstars together rather than have some chemistry and sense in the squad.

The tactics playing three at the back despite having played their best games in a 4-4-2 formation baffled many people. Van Gaal said that he did not like the formation and had to revert to 3-5-2. The formation was decent enough as United were defensively lucky due to the form of David De Gea at goal, while their goals came through sheer individual brilliance rather than some real build-up. If van Gaal finds himself in a tough spot after this season, he would definitely reflect upon some tactics he used in the middle of the season.

Reasons why he should get the sack if he misses out on top four-

Manchester United don’t have an excuse. Their transfer policy has been aggressively dedicated to bringing superstars, but not the really required players that much. The central defence was not bolstered enough and is still in need of a leader at the back, which United did not get in the January transfer window as well. Spending 150m and finishing fifth or sixth is entirely unacceptable especially because they are not even playing UCL.

They have been unlucky with injuries so far, but that doesn’t mean that a squad of such ability misses out on top four. In fact, Arsenal, one of their closest competitors have also been struck with injury problems but have shown better performances. Man United are just a point adrift of 4th placed Arsenal, but aren’t comfortable at all because of their lack of flair.

Conclusion:

Well, we might see United playing very poor according to their standards but Louis van Gaal is a manager of heavy pedigree and is playing with players of world class ability. There is a very less possibility of them missing out on a top four spot because of the individual flair that players like Di Maria, Mata, Rooney, van Persie, Falcao and De Gea etc can produce when in need and also because of the reputation of Louis van Gaal’s philosophical management that usually tends to get the best out of his players. We might soon see United play a consistent brand of football with their main team back and finish in the top four spot. But, if at all they fail to do so, then the Dutch manager deserves the sack for failing to live up to basic expectations.