Manchester United face RB Leipzig tonight, looking to continue their winning start to this season’s Champions League.
After the euphoria of last Tuesday’s win in Paris, the drab 0-0 draw with Chelsea was a bump back down to earth.
It’s clear there are plenty of questions for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to answer ahead of the match, and we’ve picked out three of them.
How to stop home slump?
United haven’t won a home match since the 5-2 thumping of Bournemouth in early July.
Solskjaer has struggled to find a balance between the dominance United are expected to exert at home and the stability to stop the counter attack.
Leipzig are a high-pressing side capable of rapid attacks, which will provide a searching examination of his ability to do that once again.
United have adapted well to away games post-lockdown; without the need to silence a baying ground and freer of the pressure to go and dominate, matches have been won.
But at home, the performances have been worrying and Solskjaer needs to find a way to change that.
Does Tuanzebe get the nod again?
This is perhaps tied to at least one other conundrum for Solskjaer. Does he return to the 3-5-2 which won in Paris?
There was evidence of two distinct Premier League and EFL Cup sides earlier in the season.
Playing the same team at Newcastle and against Chelsea, having made so many alterations against PSG hints at a similarly separate approach to the Champions League selections.
That could open the door for Tuanzebe once again, with his recovery pace being particularly important against an energetic visiting outfit.
Where does Pogba fit in?
Pogba has been given attacking cameos in United’s last two matches, being introduced to try and tip tight matches our way.
It worked in his native France, but United got worse after he and Edinson Cavani came on against Chelsea.
There is a sense that Solskjaer has given up on the idea of Pogba sitting deeper and with Bruno Fernandes the side’s number 10, that raises questions about where he even fits in.
With Donny van de Beek still out in the cold and generating headlines, it’s clear Solskjaer has some juggling to do with his midfield.
It’s good that United have far more quality in terms of midfield options this season, but it gives Solskjaer a headache over how to fit them all in.
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