Tension in Manchester United

Man United manager Erik ten Hag has the luxury – at last – of being able to make changes in key areas of the team without experiencing a reduction in quality.

In the space of just over a week, Manchester United have gone from being a club on the brink of entering crisis mode to one that is chasing a third successive victory.

Tuesday night’s 3-0 win over Crystal Palace saw Erik ten Hag’s side build on their morale-boosting win at Burnley just 72 hours earlier by producing their best performance of the season so far. They played with purpose and an attractive identity for the first time this term.

Despite making seven changes to the side that scraped past Burnley at Turf Moor, perhaps, on paper, giving them a weaker look, United were anything but. The introductions of Sofyan Amrabat, Mason Mount and Anthony Martial, to name just three, made them stronger.

The aforementioned trio will now, justifiably, be banging on Ten Hag’s door in the hope of retaining their places for Saturday’s rematch with Roy Hodgson’s side. Unlike last season’s Carabao Cup campaign, though it didn’t do United too much harm, of course, Ten Hag has the freedom to rotate his pack a lot more this time around.

He frequently cited the importance of having two players available in each position last season, but it was a scenario that was rarely available to him. He reiterated the importance of being able to double-up only last month, just days before a late flurry of activity on deadline day.

Speaking after United’s 3-2 win over Nottingham Forest, Ten Hag said: “We are prepared well; we are fully in control so if there are transfers, we need to keep the squad competitive because it will be a tough season with many games to cover.

“In many positions you need double and in the goalkeeping position we need three really good goalkeepers who can all keep the Premier League-standard so we will cover that.”

Fortunately for United, the worst of their recent injury crisis, certainly in midfield, is over, meaning the Dutchman now has an embarrassment of riches available to him in the engine room. Picking a preferred midfield system is not going to be easy.

The additions of Amrabat and Mount over the summer have, even though it is still relatively early days, significantly bolstered United’s midfield pool. They now have a wide and expansive range of different profiles of midfielders.

Casemiro and Amrabat are associated with the defensive side of the operation, Christian Eriksen, Scott McTominay, Hannibal Mejbri and Kobbie Mainoo can do a little bit of everything, both defensively and offensively, and Bruno Fernandes and Mount are the architects-in-chief, making things happen in advanced areas. Whereas last season Ten Hag was often restricted to playing Casemiro, Eriksen and Fernandes as a midfield trio, such was a lack of quality in reserve, he now has the luxury of being able to mix things up.

It Is not just in midfield, either. When everyone is fit and available, he will also have an embarrassment of riches across the board, particularly at full-back.

Diogo Dalot and Sergio Reguilon are poised to be United’s only two available full-backs for the weekend, but once Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia have recovered from their respective injury problems, Ten Hag will be spoilt for choice. Amrabat, as he displayed on Tuesday, can also operate as an auxiliary left-back.

At centre-back, United, when everyone is fit, are also well-stocked, though doubts have been raised about the overall level of quality in reserve. Harry Maguire almost left United in the summer and Jonny Evans is not a long-term solution.

There may also come a point where Victor Lindelof, understandably, wants more than just a back-up and rotational role. Nevertheless, United do have strength in depth, ahead of looking to rebuild that area of the team with fresh faces in 2024.

It Is a similar story in attack. Currently, United have two out-and-out strikers available in Rasmus Hojlund and Martial, as well as three wingers, including Marcus Rashford. Amad is on the comeback trail, meaning he could soon boost the numbers. The situations with both Jadon Sancho and Antony remain unclear.

Across the board, however, including in the goalkeeping department, United are well-stocked, so much so that the squad will have a balanced look to it once the Carrington treatment room is cleared. Even now, however, the squad looks more rounded and polished than it did only a week or so ago, with only a lack of options at full-back a slight concern.

Keeping everyone fit and available will, of course, be the main challenge for United in the coming weeks and months. But provided they avoid another major crisis, Ten Hag has got the options he wanted.