Manchester United suffered their sixth defeat of the campaign on Tuesday as Galatasaray came from behind to beat them in the Champions League group stage.
Rasmus Hojlund was the stand-out performer for the Red Devils with two sublime goals, but the club failed to preserve the lead twice before Galatasaray scored the winner.
Erik ten Hag will want a strong response from his side when they host Brentford in the Premier League on Saturday. Ahead of the game, here are two key changes he must consider.
Play Amrabat in midfield
Amrabat was expected to play a key role for the Red Devils after his deadline-day move from Fiorentina, but no one would have anticipated him starting from left-back.
The Moroccan had a perfect full debut against Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup third round, but he has struggled in the subsequent games in the Premier League and Champions League.
Against Galatasaray, he was guilty for the second and third goal conceded. Amrabat was caught out of position for the second while his loose pass contributed to the third.
The 27-year-old was also responsible for playing Icardi onside for the winner. It is quite clear that the Moroccan is not a left-back and needs to start in midfield on Saturday.
We would like to see Amrabat and Casemiro paired together with Mason Mount on the right wing or number 10 role depending on where Bruno Fernandes starts.
Better left-back solution
With Amrabat quite clearly struggling from the left-back role. Ten Hag needs to find a better solution.
Sergio Reguilon has been working individually after a minor hamstring injury. If the Spaniard returns to team training, he could make his comeback against the Bees.
In case he is unfit to start, Ten Hag should consider Diogo Dalot. The Portuguese was brilliant in winning his duels against Bukayo Saka during the 3-1 defeat last month.
Dalot’s positional change could mean Victor Lindelof starting from right-back. One of Harry Maguire or Jonny Evans would need to partner Raphael Varane in central defence.
In our view, this would be a more balanced backline to face Thomas Frank’s side. United are already seven points adrift of the top four and Saturday’s game is a must-win for them.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com
