Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
Photo by Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
Michael Carrick is seeing Luke Shaw and Marcus Rashford rekindle their partnership this season, but a third teammate can turbocharge it.
The start to the season hasn’t been the best for Man Utd, as they have dropped more points than they have won through three games.
However, amongst those results, Marcus Rashford has started the season in great form, and his partnership with Luke Shaw has hit the ground running.
The two are causing chaos in the best way, but they will soon have a third player to make it even better.
Carlos Baleba greeting by Manchester United fans at Old Trafford
Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images
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Marcus Rashford and Luke Shaw will gel with Carlos Baleba
Shaw and Rashford have been brilliant together since 2016/17, but they have never had what they will soon, when Carlos Baleba becomes available.
At the best of times, the playbook of Rashford and Shaw has been simple.
Rashford weaves his way through defenders, attracts multiple opponents, then frees up Shaw in plenty of space in the overlap.
But what if Rashford didn’t even have to do the first part, and he could combine with Shaw in acres of space for both of them?
Enter Carlos Baleba, who adds to Man Utd’s midfield what they haven’t had for many years.
Baleba joins as a left-footed progressive carrier who can shrug off challenges and eat up the ground at a rapid rate.
United haven’t really had many left-footed midfielders, so the progression down that side has always been done by Lisandro Martinez or Luke Shaw.
The angles which open up out wide for a left-footed player are vastly different from a right-footed player playing in that left channel.
Baleba will be naturally able to open his body and find Rashford and Shaw in plenty of space after attracting the attention of the opposition with his surging runs.
It makes the job far easier for both Rashford and Shaw, as the overloads they had to create as a pair asked an awful lot of Rashford and pinpoint runs from Shaw.
Rashford, being an inside forward, will unlock another level when he is surrounded by two left-footed players on his wing rather than one.
Michael Carrick is waiting for Baleba
Baleba will be unleashed by Carrick as soon as he’s available because his skill set is not replicated by anyone else in the Man Utd squad.
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Carrick loves his team to have width, but with two inside forwards, that’s not possible, which is why he keeps playing Patrick Dorgu as his LW.
When Baleba enters the team, the width will be easier to hold because of his left foot, and combined with Shaw, will allow Rashford to cut inside.
Carrick will no longer have to compromise on his principles, and will be able to unleash the ideal version of the team as he sees it.
United had been seriously lacking this variety in their team for a while, and it is exactly why Baleba, especially in top form, can be a game-changer for them.