Manchester United’s search for a third midfielder has taken them to Sander Berge, and he brings the one quality Michael Carrick desperately needs.
Having signed Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans so far, Man Utd are two-thirds of the way to completing their midfield rebuild at sensible prices.
The third one needs to be someone whose skills add to what United already have, with Santos bringing progressive ground passing and Tielemans bringing long passing in the air.
With Kobbie Mainoo being the ball carrier, United seem to have settled on Sander Berge as one of the targets for the third signing spot. He brings what’s sorely needed in this midfield.
WHO will be Man Utd’s THIRD midfielder signing to go with Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans? Who do you want?
Which midfielder do you think would fit United's rebuild best? What do we need next?
Sander Berge adds verticality to Man Utd’s midfield
Michael Carrick is building a unique team profile at Old Trafford which zigs when the rest of the league is trying to zag.
His ideal team looks like it will be full of technical players who are maestros on the ball first, and physical monsters second.
Having said that, you can’t go too far towards either extreme, as Ruben Amorim found out when he went all-in on athleticism over quality on the ball.
From having one of the tallest sides in the league under Jose Mourinho, United are happy to field one of the smallest ones under Carrick.
Kobbie Mainoo is on the shorter side, neither Tielemans nor Santos count their height as among their strengths, and if you add Lisandro Martinez behind them, this is not a very tall team in the middle of the park.
Enter 6’5″ Sander Berge, who would stand out like a mountain starting alongside these players.
It must be noted that despite his height, Berge is not very good at winning or contesting aerial duels, but you can’t teach height. (Averages just 1.4 aerial duels won/90 over his career)
If he has the physical tools, then the Man Utd coaching staff must be trusted to make full use of them, especially if it’s a tool United simply don’t have enough of right now.
Berge’s playing style is still a gamble
It’s true that Berge adds height to this Man Utd squad, but as said above, he doesn’t really play like a 6’5″ midfielder.
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Now, that might not be a problem for Carrick, who’s not looking for his midfielders, or even any player, to assert themselves in a physical contest.
However, United still need an athletic profile in midfield just to mix things up a bit.
Berge is more of a deep-lying playmaker rather than a ground-eating duel-winner, so United would be going further towards a technical style if they sign him, despite his height.
Ultimately, it does feel like United’s third signing will be a player who nobody has heard about until now, because the idea of Berge as a player is quite different to the reality of what he actually is.
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