The final countdown: is Rashford worth a place?
Solskjaer faces a few dilemmas as he picks a team to win the Europa League. So to help him out, we're having a debate
Europa League final: Villarreal v United, 8pm BST
TIM Ah, picking teams – it's part of the fun of being a fan. But even armchair selectors can get a headache and this XI feels as if it's going to be a breeze for the first eight or nine names, then a right pain in the brain.
ROB I have seven definites, though I suspect you'll disagree on at least one half of a popular midfield duo. My seven are… Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof and Shaw; McTominay and Fred; Fernandes and Cavani. I hope this midfield doesn't give you a tension headache, or a McFredache as I plan to call it from now on.
TIM Ha, I wasn't thinking in terms of a McFredache – but I’d like to recommend a McFredectomy. The two of them couldn't cope with Liverpool's hi-NRG game and that fact won't have escaped Unai Emery, who does love to do his homework (and has a nasty habit of winning the Europa). I'd go with a diamond in midfield – Matic to screen the defence, van de Beek and Pogba to pierce the opposing defence in a way McFred don’t, and Fernandes obviously in front of them – effectively as a false nine, which is where he often plays anyway. And by the way I wouldn’t have Fernandes as captain, because he gets too het up: Matic, who did the job well at Wolves, would be better for everybody’s heart rate.
‘RASHFORD IS A NATURAL
FOR THE BIG OCCASION,
AND HE’S PLAYED IN A
EUROPA FINAL BEFORE’
ROB The thought of a McFredectomy is going to haunt me for a long time. That’s a persuasive argument about the captaincy, and you’ve made me change my mind on Fernandes. But I didn't expect your XI. From memory it's a long time since they've used a diamond, or anything other than 4-2-3-1. Part of me thinks it's an unnecessary risk to do something unusual in a final, especially as the media need no excuse to pile in on Solskjaer, but then Fergie's two Champions League-winning XIs never played together before or after. What about the forwards?
TIM Cavani and Rashford to start, each in the channel – Cavani inside-right and Rashford inside-left. Rashford deserves to be in the XI after scoring eight goals in Europe this season, four times as many as Greenwood. For me, that outweighs the question of form – plus Rashford is a natural for the big occasion, and he’s played in a Europa final before. You need an impact sub and the best candidate for that role (apart from Cavani) is Greenwood. So I hope Solskjaer brings him on after an hour at the latest, and if things aren't going well he can sharpen United up as he did against Liverpool.
ROB Rashford’s big-game record is really important; I just can’t decide to what extent it outweighs his recent form and his performances on the right, where somebody will have to play if I stick with 4-2-3-1. Greenwood is the most natural on that side, and has been at his cold-eyed best of late, so I think it comes down to Pogba v Rashford on the left. It’s complicated. Rashford can be a hopeless substitute, whereas Greenwood and Pogba are consistently influential from the bench. But Pogba and especially Rashford are established big-game players, and though I’m certain Greenwood will become one, he’s not there yet. There’s also Pogba’s creative bromance with Fernandes, which is important in a team that doesn’t always have the right balance of speed and wit. You could make a case for any two from three, but I’m going with Pogba and Greenwood.
Your diamond is a neat way of getting Pogba and Rashford in, though I’m still uncomfortable with changing the shape after so long playing 4-2-3-1. Rightly or wrongly, it could send a subliminal message of panic to the players. I also want McFred to protect a Maguire-less defence, especially as the first goal is really important. I know United have come from behind to win umpteen times this season, but the heightened pressure of a final makes that harder to do. Villarreal are also very good defensively – they’ve only conceded three in eight knockout games. On that note, I’m looking forward to watching Pau Torres, who could be the answer to United’s central-defensive prayers if they don’t land Varane. Which leads us conveniently to the next dilemma: Bailly or Tuanzebe?
TIM You’re right about Villareal’s defending – United’s job is to make sure this isn’t the last of too many nil-nils in a bizarre season. At the back I’m-
ROB Sorry to interrupt but have you seen United’s head-to-head with Villarreal? Four games, four 0-0s. Anyway, back to the defence.
TIM At the back I’m going for Tuanzebe, because he's just as quick as Bailly, has a calmer head, and can happily go on the left, tucking in next to Shaw. I want Lindelof on the right so he can play that killer ball of his, over the top to Rashford.
ROB That’s an important point. We often think of just having two centre-backs, rather than a left and right centre-back, and I do prefer Lindelof on the right. I also like the heart rate of your spine, if that isn’t a medical oxymoron. But for all that, I’d go for Bailly’s experience. I really like Tuanzebe, and he should have played a lot more after that majestic performance in Paris in September. This is a European final, though, and I’m not sure he’s ready. So Bailly it is, against his old club, even though I fear I will be frantically trying to delete this entry after 25 minutes when he takes an overzealous shortcut through a Villarreal player in the penalty area.
TIM So, one dilemma left, and it’s right at the top of the team sheet. Who’s the goalie?
ROB I've lost track of who the No1 is, and whether it's the No1 or No2 keeper who is supposed to be playing tonight. So let's pick purely on merit: de Gea or Henderson?
TIM I would have gone for Henderson until that shaky night against Liverpool, when, as Roy Keane said, he looked small in the one-on-ones, the part of the job de Gea does best. But I'm not sure this one is about merit anyway. de Gea's the Europa League goalie, and this could be his last game for United, so he plays, doesn't he? Solskjaer has surely worked out that he was wrong to dump Romero for the semi-final last year, in a similar scenario. And de Gea deserves to start a European final after missing out in 2017, because Mourinho (rightly) stuck by Romero as his Europa goalie. You could argue that the United bench that night had more talent than the actual team – Carrick, Rooney...
Who’s in your XI? Tell us on Twitter @United_Writing
ROB I would play de Gea, as much as anything because of his performance in Rome, but I'm uneasy with picking a side for a final on anything other than merit. I fear this will happen in attack, with Rashford or Pogba shoehorned into the team on the right. I suppose it's a bit more complicated with de Gea and Henderson because, in an era of cup goalkeepers, merit can take different forms. Anyway, DdG it is, and, with a nod to United fan Tim Burgess, let's hope for one last dead dead good performance.
TIM Nice. That means we agree on seven players, though not always in the same position: de Gea, Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Shaw, Pogba, Fernandes and Cavani.
ROB There’s suddenly a McFred-sized hole in my life.
TIM Well, there's clearly not going to be one on the field. Solskjaer likes Fred so much that, in United's practice match yesterday, he had him playing for both teams – according to the MEN he was wearing a neutral bib and switching sides all the time, to join the one that had the ball. A bit of a fair-weather Fred.
Tim’s team (4-D-2) de Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelof, Tuanzebe, Shaw; Matic (capt); van de Beek, Pogba; Fernandes; Cavani, Rashford.
Subs (in order of preference, if no injuries): Greenwood for Rashford, Mata for van de Beek, Fred for Matic, McTominay for Pogba, Elanga for Cavani.
Rob’s team (4-2-3-1) de Gea (capt); Wan-Bissaka, Bailly, Lindelof, Shaw; McTominay, Fred; Greenwood, Fernandes, Pogba; Cavani.
Subs: so much depends on the score and the individual performances, but I’d have Rashford, van de Beek, Mata and Matic warming up first. If United go behind, the lockpickers on the bench will be crucial.
Ole’s team (probable, 4-2-3-1) de Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Bailly, Lindelof, Shaw; McTominay, Fred; Rashford, Fernandes (capt), Pogba; Cavani.
Subs: Greenwood after 75 minutes, van de Beek after 89.
United v Villareal kicks off in Gdansk at 9pm local time, 8pm BST. Live coverage is free in the UK on BTsport.com – details here. Rob will be live-blogging for The Guardian from 5.30pm.