Diogo Dalot divides opinion like no other Manchester United player, but all that can be put to rest if Michael Carrick just unleashes the best feature in his game.
Availability has been a double-edged sword for Diogo Dalot, as he has been at the centre of most squads that have found new lows every season.
Sometimes he’s the cause of it, but most of the time, he’s just there, either being misprofiled as a wing-back under Ruben Amorim or a default first-choice under Erik ten Hag.
However, with Michael Carrick, he finally has a manager who is actually perfect to unleash the underused part of his game, which can make him such a huge asset.
Diogo Dalot throw in against Fulham
Photo by Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images
What are the biggest POSITIVES about Diogo Dalot’s game?
Dalot graphic
Getty Images
Diogo Dalot is a monster in the first phase of buildup
The major pet peeve of Man Utd fans when it comes to Dalot is his wastefulness on the ball, mainly in the final third of the pitch.
It doesn’t help that he finds himself in that position often, and the mistakes made there are more visible because they are a sign of wasted opportunity.
However, look beyond the wasted opportunities in the final third, and it becomes clear that Dalot has been crying out not to be in that position in the first place.
More United News
Take his last four games, for example, because they contain every result possible – a draw against West Ham, wins against Crystal Palace and Everton, and a loss against Newcastle.
A pattern emerges where Dalot plays better the deeper he plays. When he’s tasked with being a ball progressor from the first phase of the play, he is at his best.
In contrast, when his average position is in the opponent’s half, he struggles to make an impact with his final ball.
In the draw against West Ham, he had 63 touches, and about half of those came in the opponent’s half.
Against Everton, he had 77 touches, and more than 70% came in his own half as he relished the role of being a buildup impact player.
Against Palace, he had a remarkable 90 touches, but less than 5% came in the final third, with Dalot tasked with being influential near the halfway line as Palace defended deep.
Opposition Dalot’s touches total % touches in Opp. half
West Ham (A) 63 >50%
Everton (A) 77 <30%
Crystal Palace (h) 90 <5% (final third phase)
He was still playing the buildup role, just slightly higher up than usual due to United’s personnel advantage.
This shouldn’t come as a huge surprise because Dalot has said himself that he enjoyed it most when Erik ten Hag asked him to play as the inverted full-back.
Under him, Dalot won the Player of the Season award by regularly coming inside as a defensive midfielder and keeping things ticking.
In contrast, Amorim had shoehorned him into a poor man’s Nuno Mendes role on the right, where he messed up most of his final third opportunities.
Enter Carrick, whose system is perfect for Dalot, but he hasn’t been unleashed yet.
Michael Carrick is perfect for Dalot, but it hasn’t happened yet
In theory, Dalot is the perfect player for Carrick’s style of play, which utilises a lopsided full-back system.
Have you been impressed with Michael Carrick’s coaching staff?
Would you keep them all if he becomes permanent?🤔
Manchester United v Manchester City - Premier League
Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
If the left-back overlaps with abandon, Dalot can easily tuck in and form a back-three, and by allowing Casemiro or Kobbie Mainoo to break forward, he can function as an auxiliary defensive midfielder as well.
However, because Luke Shaw’s dynamism has suffered due to injuries, the burden of overlapping has fallen into Dalot’s lap.
Shaw is the more defensive-minded full-back, while Dalot roars forward, which is just not his game.
In an ideal world, Patrick Dorgu will replace Shaw at left-back to allow Dalot to tuck inside and do what he does best – be a ball progressor in the buildup role.
That will solve multiple problems because Dorgu is a much better threat in the final third, and Matheus Cunha likes to cut inside.
The best way to use Dalot is to keep him as far away from the goal as possible, because his skill set will allow the team to go as near the goal as possible from that position.
United are doing it the opposite way with him so far. Carrick’s system is perfect for him, but it hasn’t happened yet due to injuries.
Join Our Newsletter
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox