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Manchester United are headed towards a defensive crisis

By Rucker Haringey

LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 23: Manager Jose Mourinho of Manchester United speaks to Eric Bailly after he left the match with an injury during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on October 23, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Matthew Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 23: Manager Jose Mourinho of Manchester United speaks to Eric Bailly after he left the match with an injury during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on October 23, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Matthew Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images) /
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Manchester United can’t afford to lose Eric Bailly

When Jose Mourinho took over at Manchester United, few fans were concerned about the club’s defensive solidarity. That is, after all, the Special One’s specialty. Fans at Old Trafford are going to have to rethink that position of Eric Bailly misses significant time due to injury.

Mourinho was far from optimistic about his centre back’s injury in the aftermath of United’s embarrassing 4-0 defeat at the hands of Chelsea. He expressed his concern that Bailly is “badly injured” and speculated that it might be an issue with one of the ligaments in his knee. Quite simply, United can’t afford to be without their talented defender for an extended period of time.

Even with Bailly in the starting XI, they were exposed by Chelsea’s inconsistent attack to the tune of four goals. Mourinho rightly attributed much of the Blues’ offensive success to individual errors, but those still count. Part of being a successful manager is the ability to eliminate those sort of errors from your stars.

If Bailly is forced out of the lineup for a long time, United suddenly become very thin along the back line. Presumably, Mourinho will resort to last year’s central defensive pairing of Daley Blind and Chris Smalling. The two performed surprisingly well last year under Louis van Gaal, but Smalling has been a horror show this season. His Whoscored.com player rating average of 6.55 clearly shows him to be a below-average Premier League defender on the year.

Questions still remain about whether or not Blind is really suited to be a central defender in the Premier League. I’m more optimistic than most about his ability to hold up in central defense, but it still may not be his best position. More importantly for Mourinho, it removes the ability to play him at left back.

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That will force Luke Shaw back into the starting XI on a consistent basis. The talented Englishman has been inconsistent at best this year. His manager has questioned his performances publicly on several occasions already this season. It’s a reasonable guess that Mourinho won’t relish having to rely on him every match.

Playing that grouping also happens to be Mourinho’s best case alternative. If one of those players becomes injured, it could really lead to some tough choices for the club. Forgive me if deploying Marcos Rojo as a central defender doesn’t inspire me with a great deal of confidence.

Manchester United pay Jose Mourinho a lot of money to put the squad in the best position to win. Eric Bailly’s injury could make it very difficult for The Special One to conjure up a passable Premier League defense.

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