How Manchester United could line up against Norwich City

Manchester United will look to build on their last two performances when they take on Norwich City in the Premier League at Carrow Road on Sunday.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men produced an improved display against Liverpool last weekend ahead of breaking their 12-game winless run away from home against Partizan.

However, the Red Devils will be acutely aware of the threat posed by Daniel Farke’s side, who shocked the world by beating Manchester City 3-2 last month.

Out: Paul Pogba (foot), Eric Bailly (knee), Timothy Fosu-Mensah (knee), Diogo Dalot (groin), Axel Tuanzebe (hip)
Doubtful: Nemanja Matic (other), Luke Shaw (thigh)

Many United fans will want to see the exciting young full-back Brandon Williams in action once again this weekend following the academy graduate’s accomplished performance at left-wing back in Belgrade.

However, Solskjaer is unlikely to subject the youngster to too much pressure and instead looks set to use Ashley Young, who performed reasonably well in that role against Liverpool.

Marcos Rojo was tipped to leave Old Trafford over the summer and is viewed as an essentially bit-part player, but with Tuanzebe injured and the Argentine enjoying a decent couple of games against Liverpool and Partizan, it would not be a surprise to see him on the left of a back three this weekend.

Solskjaer’s decision to switch to a 3-4-1-2 system is likely to help Fred, who has looked lost for the most part since moving to Old Trafford but seemed more comfortable in that setup against Liverpool, with the Brazilian able to make use of the added passing lanes created by the full-backs staying high.

Having rested Pereira in Belgrade, the Norwegian boss will want to use him in the number 10 role once again after what was an excellent 60 minutes in that position against Liverpool.

The 23-year-old has been used in a variety of positions at United but his deployment in behind a front two affords him the chance to exploit the space between defence and midfield, which will be crucial against a Norwich side who are likely to sit back.
Anthony Martial’s return from fitness and to goalscoring form this week would have been a huge boost for Solskjaer, whose attack appeared to run out of ideas prior to the October international break.

The Frenchman is likely to partner with Marcus Rashford, who was excellent against Liverpool, in an attempt to bring some cut and thrust to the last line of Norwich’s defence. Should United go ahead in the game and force Norwich out of their shells, the pair would make a fantastic counter-attacking unit.