Matheus Cunha is already a key player for Michael Carrick, but Carlo Ancelotti is now helping him further with his Brazil experiment.
For a player who didn’t look like he had a clear role in Michael Carrick’s setup, Matheus Cunha deserves immense credit for making himself undroppable.
He’s made the left wing spot his own, perfectly carrying out Carrick’s instructions of stretching the play and balancing it by coming inside when needed.
There are more levels to be unlocked in Cunha’s game, however, and the role Ancelotti has given him for Brazil will help Man Utd.
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Matheus Cunha’s split striker role for Brazil
Ancelotti prefers to keep things simple in his setup and empowers the players to make a difference by platforming them correctly (remind anyone of Carrick?).
For Brazil, the Italian knew that he had players who could beat their man off the dribble at will, so he deployed them in a 4-4-2 setup.
In a recent game against France, it showcased itself in a front two of Vinicius Jr and Cunha as the “strikers” but they were strikers on paper only.
Vinicius started on the left of the front two, and Cunha started on the right, with their remit being to stretch the game horizontally and vertically.
Vinicius went to his preferred left half-space from where he could cut inside to his stronger right foot, and Cunha went to work down the right.
Basically, Cunha’s role mirrored his role for United, only ramped up further because he couldn’t come inside on his stronger foot at all.
This role will fundamentally cause Cunha to change his playing style to an extent, which will be music to the ears of Carrick.
Cunha’s Brazil role helps Michael Carrick
Cunha has remained an inside forward under Carrick, but it’s so clear that his best position is where Bruno Fernandes plays.
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He deserves credit for refashioning himself into a traditional winger out of possession, which is where his Brazil role comes into the picture.
Playing on the right side of a split striker system forces him into the exact channels to do the exact things that Carrick wants from his wide players.
He’s tracking back on defence, getting to the byline on offence, taking up half-spaces when he doesn’t have the ball but his team is attacking, and ghosting into the box while taking potshots from range.
Carrick couldn’t have asked for a better playing profile for Cunha to get him ready and unleashed for a role on the wing in his setup.
Ancelotti might be out of the running for becoming the permanent Man Utd manager, but he’s just helped Carrick’s case by giving him an even better version of Cunha.
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