This is the tactical decision that will define our season.
How to do it?
For a start, bin the 4-2-3-1. This isn't the 90's/00's anymore, literally no top teams play it and we don't even have the players for it. It's a relatively safe system but by God do I hate it. For it to work, at this level, you essentially need a world class CF (Drogba, Diego Costa, Benzema, prime Torres etc) who is experienced and can do pretty much everything, ie. hold up play, dribbling, speed, strength, can score all kinds of goals. If you combined Martial and Rashford into one player you'd still come up short as they're not strong enough or good enough in the air. You also need a top drawer number 10 who, similarly, has a wide skill set, fast, good in tight spaces, work rate, great pass, can score from distance and highly creative. This is perhaps a position we are lacking in even more. Lingard and Mata tick 3 or 4 of those between them, not top 6 material options for this position.
The solution? Play to our strengths and not our weaknesses. We're short in midfield, stacked in defence and have several positions with no quality options. We do however have a great group if young, pacey forwards with an eye for goal, a pretty solid back 5 (discounting the brain farts that happen when we end up get pressured by shit clubs because our tactics suck) and the enigma himself, Pogba.
Here's my 2 cents.
-----------------De Gea--------------------
--------???-Maguire-Lindelof-------
AWB-McTominay-Fred(?)-Shaw
------------------Pogba--------------------
-----------Rashford-Martial-----------
Gameplan: Keep possession in defence, sit deep, if there's no counter on, push up as a team and let Pogba and the forwards do their magic. Maguire can push up if the opposition parks the bus, last half hour as a defensive mid and last 5 as an out an out striker. He gets 5-10 goals a season like this. Pogba in the key role here of main creative outlet. If he gets crowded out, him being closer to the strikers means the strikers get more space! Martial and Rashford combine with Paul around the box to create opportunities while the rest of the team supports. If nothing is coming off, work the ball down the wings and get Pogba in the effing box. The guy is, what, 6ft 3? He can do real damage there as he did against City, literally the only time he's got forward like that. All our front 3 get 20~ goals a season and we set a record for clean sheets, however we do drop points at home to minnows parking the bus for no score draws.
Now the obvious criticisms;
3rd CB? Jones, Rojo or Bailly, who ever is fit or on form. OR Slot Dalot at RWB and drop AWB back there, He's big, quick and probably the best tackler in the squad, if he adapts well in training he could really do well there.
Fred? Gunna be honest this is the weak spot. Our refusal to buy a centre mid this summer may well be our undoing. Garner? Too young. Matic? Too old. Shocking these are our only options. Curveball but maybe play Jesse here? All he needs to do is put himself about and pass to Pogba, I don't think he's so bad he can't make 10 yard passes and he does have the workrate. Could be an option against top teams to nullify the KdB's and Eriksens of the world.
Whole team rests on Pogba? I reckon he can do it, simple as that. When I watch him, there's only one player he reminds me of and, for me, it's Ronaldinho. The guy is an artist, a creative type, doesn't play so much with fire and grit as with guile and cunning. If you give him the right platform, actually playing our most talented player in an attacking position, he will produce.
Sadly we'll never see this cos if Ole can't coach it properly, it'll fail, he'll look weak and be sacked by Christmas but believe me, this is the best formation for our squad and it's abilities.
Just, for the love of God, keep Lingard away from our attacks.