Man Utd have only one natural striker in their squad and it's becoming clear they need to look at signing a back-up for Benjamin Sesko.
Benjamin Sesko and Matheus Cunha
Matheus Cunha has been playing as a false nine in Benjamin Sesko's absence
View Image
Nobody could accuse Michael Carrick of being a slave to tactical trends. At a time when Premier League midfields have become a battleground defined by duels and physicality, he is trying to build a team that can control games and dominate with possession.
And just as the old-fashioned No. 9 is threatening to make a comeback, Carrick is prioritising an attacking system that is all about fluidity and movement. Manchester United have gone with a false nine in every Premier League game so far this season.
Carrick does have an out-and-out striker in his squad, but Benjamin Sesko has only started cup games so far this season and could now face another spell on the sidelines after aggravating a problematic shin injury.
There is a debate to be had over whether Carrick would have started Sesko anyway, given he seems to like a system that allows for more interchange in attack. He played Bryan Mbeumo through the middle at times last season and has doubled down on that by going with Matheus Cunha this term.
The Brazilian wore No. 9 for Brazil at the World Cup but he isn't a natural striker. He is a false nine who likes to link play and drop deep, rather than a frontman who will compete with the centre-backs and be a penalty box presence.
That was an approach plenty of elite clubs used a few years ago, but it feels like the trend has gone back to more conventional strikers. Erling Haaland, Alexander Isak, Joao Pedro, Igor Thiago and Viktor Gyokeres are all Premier League examples.
Nottingham Forest paying a fee of up to £50million for Liam Delap shows the value of a traditional No. 9 is on the rise. Jean-Philippe Mateta has been a success story at Crystal Palace. Likewise, Bryan Brobbey at Sunderland and Dominic Calvert-Lewin at Leeds.
But with Sesko out, United have no alternative that can fulfil that role. They don't even have an option in the academy. Age-group sides have started to play the same system, and the impressive Amir Ibragimov has started the season well as a false nine.
Chido Obi is the closest academy player to being a natural striker and he's had a taste of first-team football, but the 18-year-old is spending this season on loan at Willem II in the Eredivisie and has managed just 36 minutes across four games so far this season.
United were never in the market for a striker in the summer, even if Joshua Zirkzee had left the club, but if Sesko's fitness remains problematic, then they might have to change their approach, either in January or in the 2027 summer window.
As the Delap deal shows, signing a striker now comes with a premium. The false nine era pioneered by Pep Guardiola at Barcelona meant that academies gradually stopped producing what you would call old-school centre-forwards. They might be back in vogue now, but that doesn't mean there are enough of them to go around.
With Sesko out, Carrick will stick with his fluid front three, although there must be a temptation to try Mbeumo through the middle rather than Cunha. But with no obvious solution to that position on the academy depth chart and the youth set-up also now playing without a natural striker, United might need to turn to the market again for the most in-demand position of them all.
Content cannot be displayed without consent