Monday night saw the end of any realistic prospect of Manchester United winning any silverware this season. The 2-1 home defeat to Arsenal in the FA Cup was a masterclass in how to defeat Louis Van Gaal’s reds and it showed, in case anyone had forgotten, just how smart a manager Arsene Wenger is. Aside from Arsenal’s tactical nouse, however, there were a number of other reasons why United’s cup dream ended at the quarter final stage, and, if Van Gaal is to bring Champions League football back to Old Trafford next season, he will need to address these quickly.

Too Slow in Attack

First, it is all well and good playing possession football, patiently waiting for your opponent to make a mistake and show a chink in their armour before you make the killer pass and punish them. It is also all well and good to play on the break, although this is a concept that will be alien to most United fans, but it is not acceptable to continually pass the ball backwards and never look for an incisive through-ball. Playing possession football without pushing your opponent back is asking for pressure to be brought upon yourself and is easy to defend against. The Reds first thought and first movement needs to be ‘forward’, they need to switch their focus from conceding less goals than their opposition to scoring more.

Rooney is the Main Man

Symptomatic of United’s lack of willingness to go forward is Wayne Rooney’s recent lack of goals. The 29 year old’s header against Arsenal was only his fourth in 2015 and it goes to show the lack of service that he has been receiving. When Di Maria finally picked out a quality cross, Rooney was ready and willing to snap it up. Given the chances, and the opportunity to play in the faces of opposition defences rather than needing to come deep for the ball, Wayne Rooney will score. If there is one player who can deliver Van Gaal’s dream of a top four spot then it is Rooney- he just needs to be given the opportunity.

   by  theglobalpanorama 

Midfield Dominance

On Monday night United were overrun in midfield. Daley Blind has, on occasion, looked like a quality signing since his arrival from Ajax but he looked off the pace on Monday. The 25 year old was slow to react and struggled to deal with the guile of Santi Cazorla and pace of Ozil; Arsenal’s Francis Coquelin’s combative display in opposition should serve as an example to the Dutchman. United face Tottenham on Saturday,and many betfair punters will expect them to bounce back, but I would suggest that they need to make changes in midfield if they are to prevent Spurs from creating chances. Dropping Marouane Fellaini into a deeper role and dropping Blind to the bench could be an option for Van Gaal.

Lack of Width

Lastly, United need to address their lack of width. Angel Di Maria’s one game ban following his crazy sending off on Monday could be a blessing for Van Gaal. It is hard to drop a man you have splashed out £59m on, but the Argentinian is not living up to his reputation at the moment. There is a lack of pace going forward and the former Real Madrid man has become predictable in always cutting back inside on to his stronger left foot. Talk of Di Maria moving on from Old Trafford may be premature, but giving the likes of Ashley Young and Adnan Januzaj an opportunity to start against Spurs, and giving them the license to take defenders on and use the width of the field, could be beneficial for the team- it could also make Di Maria up his game in order to win his place back.