Late last week, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer listed Andreas Pereira as a winger when discussing his options in attack.
Pereira proved at Old Trafford against Chelsea that he is very capable of delivering a pinpoint cross. But that does not make him a winger.
Solskjaer put this to the test at the weekend against Southampton, with Pereira selected out wide to accommodate Juan Mata centrally.
We have been in favour of more game time for Pereira, after he was a bit unfairly dropped having played United’s opening weekend win. perhaps Solskjaer felt obliged to try and squeeze him into his line-up at St Mary’s, having overlooked him against Crystal Palace.
The experiment did not work out. Pereira looked lost out on the right in Saturday’s game.
Wrong position
Pereira did not create any chances, and completed just 76 per cent of his passes.
Unsurprisingly he did not dribble past any opponents, and his one shot on goal was easily saved by Angus Gunn.
When Pereira was in possession his natural tendency was to pass it, or drift inside. He did not offer United any natural width.
It might have been an experiment Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wanted to see, but on Saturday it did not work out and it was no surprise he was substituted on 67 minutes.
Alternatives
Pereira’s poor wing performance came on a weekend Hirving Lozano scored on his debut for Napoli against Juventus.
United were linked with a move for Lozano for much of 2018, the MEN reported, as he scored 17 goals for the second consecutive league season for PSV.
United did not follow this interest up, allowing him to sign unchallenged for Napoli for a fee of £36 million.
Unlike Pereira he is a natural for the position and would have given United an immediate upgrade, rather than having to put square pegs in round holes, and just hoping blindly that Jadon Sancho signs next summer.
United do have an alternative already, and that is to play Tahith Chong in the role on the right.
Chong is a natural winger who just needs a bit more trust from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The teenager was an unused substitute at St Mary’s.
Given that United chose not to spend on a winger like Lozano in the summer, Solskjaer now needs to let Chong show his quality and give him time to establish himself.
Pereira’s failed audition may put the manager nearer to doing this.
Our message to Andrea Pereira, is if he does get another chance on the right, which is possible given the lack of options… prove us wrong, show that you can adapt your game, because on Saturday, we didn’t see it.
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