United’s signings have been hit and miss since Louis van Gaal took over at the club, with club record signing Angel di Maria offloaded at a substantial loss to Paris Saint-Germain just a season after he joined following his underwhelming performances.
Advertisement
The German has looked an assured presence on numerous occasions this season, and is still more than capable of doing a job in games where United are in control of the game, however the injuries suffered over the last few seasons of his time with Bayern, coupled with his age, mean he is susceptible to being overran and outpaced in the middle of the park.
United pride themselves on promoting young players through their ranks into the first team. Once United find their rhythm in a match they are very hard to break down and defend against, even more so since the arrival of Anthony Martial, yet if a team start a match quickly in an attacking manner, United do struggle.
As of yet, all they have to show for it is a return to Champions League football.
At Goodison Park, United have to avoid a similarly slow start.
For Everton, the likes of Ross Barkley, Steven Naismith, Aaron Lennon, Gerard Deulofeu and Romelu Lukaku will be the main focus for the team’s attacking front, with Lukaku being Everton’s real key to victory. However, there is a sense of fragility about this Everton team left over from last year’s disappointing season.
Following the recent defeat to title rivals Arsenal, Manchester United will be looking to bounce back with a win against in-form Everton.
Advertisement
With the defensive nuance of Schneiderlin and the deep-lying creativity offered by Herrera, it must only be a matter of time before Louis van Gaal hands the pair a starting role in the side for a run of games and enjoys the fruits of his labour. The 29-year-old’s ankle injury has kept Rooney out of England’s qualifying match with Estonia and it could keep him out of the trip to his former club. The opinions expressed belong to the author and are not necessarily shared by Metro.
