Playing for 90
Fansided

Manchester United’s projected starting 11 for 2016/17

By Rucker Haringey

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MARCH 17: Manager Louis van Gaal of Manchester United walks off at halftime during the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 Second Leg match between Manchester United and Liverpool at Old Trafford on March 17, 2016 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by John Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images)
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MARCH 17: Manager Louis van Gaal of Manchester United walks off at halftime during the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 Second Leg match between Manchester United and Liverpool at Old Trafford on March 17, 2016 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by John Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
6 of 12
Next
Manchester United’s Italian defender Matteo Darmian plays the ball forward during the English Premier League football match between Manchester United and Everton at Old Trafford in Manchester, north west England, on April 3, 2016.
Manchester United’s Italian defender Matteo Darmian plays the ball forward during the English Premier League football match between Manchester United and Everton at Old Trafford in Manchester, north west England, on April 3, 2016. /

Matteo Darmian

Candidly, United have more faith in the Italian right back than I do, but they’re the ones who get to make this decision. Matteo Darmian is the most likely player to man the right back spot for the Red Devils next season.

Darmian hasn’t been bad for United this year, but he hasn’t been terribly good either. He won’t head into next season as a certain starter by any means, but it will take a significant transfer purchase to knock him out of the starting 11.

If I were a United fan, I’d be hoping for such a purchase. Darmian simply doesn’t have enough quality to hold down a starting position for a club with Premier League title aspirations. A lot of attention will go towards the club’s search for a striker, but a quality right back purchase would be a very efficient investment.

Absent of that, United will hope that Darmian’s performance will improve as he becomes more comfortable with life in the Premier League. A moderate uptick in form could make him an above average right back, but again, I’m not very optimistic of that sort of career growth. Darmian gets the nod here, but it’s largely an indictment of the lack of other options at Old Trafford.

Next: Defensive midfielder

Home/Manchester United