Manchester United’s wing-back dilemma: Lee Sharpe questions Ruben Amorim’s tactics | OneFootball

Head coach Ruben Amorim is placing too much demand on players asked to perform the wing-back role at Manchester United, according to legendary winger Lee Sharpe.

In an exclusive interview with The Peoples Person courtesy of NewBettingSites.uk, Sharpe said that if he were the manager, he would change the formation from the 3-4-3 employed by the Portuguese head coach.

“I’ve never really been a lover of three at the back and wing-backs,” Sharpe said. “Wing-back is a real funny position because you need someone that’s comfortable and happy to play as a fullback, but also have the ability and the creativity to be a winger.”

“It’s very difficult to find someone that has both in the locker. You either think forward or you think defensively. We’re losing out a little bit offensively with having wingbacks. If we could [we’d] have an attacking fullback who can get down the wing every now and again and get crosses in, but predominantly, they’re good defenders.”

The former England international explained that the current personnel are not best suited to the role.

“We lose out a little bit when Amad’s a wing-back. Dalot, Dorgu and Mazraoui, they do fit the bill. I know he plays Mazraoui as a centre back. They fit the bill as a wing-back, but I just think creative-wise, going forward, I’m not sure they’re quite good enough.”

“Dalot, he’s a little bit sloppy at times and maybe not good enough defensively, maybe a bit better going forward, but still makes a few too many bad decisions.”

“Dorgu, I think, he’s going to be good, but lacks a bit of confidence.”

Why the role is so difficult

Sharpe went on to explain why the position is so demanding in Amorim’s formation.

“It’s a horrible position because you get caught too deep. If your left centre half’s not happy coming out and playing fullback, then you get caught a little bit too deep and you’re too far from attacking build-ups to be a threat.”

“Then when you do get up there as a wing-back, you generally have a midfielder and a fullback that can both cover you and try and take the ball off you, so you get double-teamed a little bit. So it is a difficult position to play and to find space and to express yourself going forward. I think we’ve seen that from the players that are playing at the moment.”

Drawing on his own experience as a winger who was sometimes expected to play as a full-back, Sharpe explained:

“If you want to play a winger as a left-back, I think it gives you a lot more options because you have a winger in front of you that people have got to think about as well. But when you’re the only wide man out there as a wingback, covering fullback and winger role, it’s very difficult to play in that position when you’ve got a winger and a fullback against you. It takes a little bit away from you offensively.”

“I know it’s a bit of a help when you’ve got a left centre back that’s helping you as a fullback. But then when the left centre back is sat on the halfway line as a defender and you’re down there without the fullback helping you as a winger, it makes it a much more difficult position to play.”

Amad as a wing-back

We asked Sharpe what needs to be tweaked to get the best out of Amad in the wing-back role.

“Again, that’s a difficult one,” he answered. “As long as you’re aware that he is a winger playing wing-back, he does offer you a lot going forward. He keeps the ball very well. He’s high energy, so he can get up and down the line.”

“I just think you need to make sure the right centre-back is giving him a lot of information and there’s a lot of communication in the games defensively for him, and they look after him because that’s not his strength. His strengths are getting in the last third of the pitch and running at people and creating unrest and unease in back fours. If he can get him up the pitch and play higher, wing-back is not a bad role for him.

“He’s wise enough. He’s good enough at [the defensive aspects]. Sometimes as a young winger, when you’ve got full-back responsibility, you can switch off from time to time, maybe when the ball’s on the other side or when you think the game’s not affecting you, you’ve still got to be switched on. So that’s when experience from a centre-half can help you with communication. But yeah, he’s certainly good enough to play the role. He just needs a bit of time and education.”

Featured image Justin Setterfield via Getty Images

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