Michael Carrick\u2019s brief spell as Manchester United manager is over, with Mauricio Pochettino taking charge after 10 months in the job.<\/p>\n
The Argentine arrives from his role as USMNT manager and faces a daunting assignment at one of European football\u2019s most troubled clubs. United are at a historic low, with relegation a real concern and several off-field problems still hanging over the side.<\/p>\n
Pochettino\u2019s reputation has taken a hit after an underwhelming Chelsea spell and a mixed period in the United States, so he will begin with questions to answer. Even so, there is still hope that the coach who guided Tottenham to the 2019 Champions League final can restore structure, intensity and attacking purpose.<\/p>\n
If he is given influence over recruitment in the months ahead, United\u2019s shape could look very different. In goal, Senne Lammens remains the current choice despite a dip in form from last season, with other areas judged more urgent.<\/p>\n
At right-back, Alex Freeman stands out as a possible fit. The 22-year-old Villarreal player is described as a dynamic worker with strong recovery pace and the physical edge to cope with the Premier League. Central defence could feature Nathan Collins alongside Lisandro Mart\u00ednez, with Collins viewed as a strong candidate if Brentford can be persuaded to sell, while Mart\u00ednez may benefit from the arrival of a fellow Argentine.<\/p>\n
On the left, Alejandro Balde offers the sort of attacking threat Pochettino tends to value. Carlos Baleba could anchor midfield after his \u00a370 million ($92 million) move, while Kobbie Mainoo may find fresh opportunity in the centre.<\/p>\n
Further forward, Bryan Mbeumo looks secure on the right, where his more natural role should be used more often. Bruno Fernandes would operate as the central creator, with his status unchanged for now despite contract uncertainty beyond this season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Pochettino\u2019s arrival could reshape United, with a new XI built around signings, balance and energy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":22447,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[179],"tags":[1047,59,182],"class_list":["post-22448","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-manchester-united","tag-champions-league","tag-featured","tag-transfers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22448","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22448"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22448\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22447"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22448"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22448"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22448"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}