How Wayne Rooney's Lampard Role Is Impacting on Angel Di Maria

Be it stubbornness, a genuine belief in the method at hand or just plain foolishness, Louis van Gaal has stuck to his guns on a number of big decisions made at Manchester United this season.

Despite outcry from the fans and a demand for change, the Dutchman has continued to turn in head-scratchers in the form of some of his on-pitch choices.

Placing the club's voyage for third place in the Premier League and therefore a spot in the 2015-16 UEFA Champions League in the defensive hands of Chris Smalling, Phil Jones and Jonny Evans is regarded as the definition of risky.

The obsession with the 3-5-2 formation has produced some sterile, asinine performances both in attack and at the back, and the mysterious use (or misuse) of Radamel Falcao and Ander Herrera continues to boggle the mind.

No decisions irritate more than the ones surrounding Angel Di Maria, and in particular his deployment on the pitch. Many are simply at a loss as to why the Argentinian, signed for £59.7 million in the summer from Real Madrid, has not been used in his favoured position—central midfield—every week.

Why pay the money, then stick him into unfamiliar territory?

The answer may well be found in the most unlikely of corners.

Wayne Rooney, England and Manchester United captain, has taken his position.

Van Gaal has been forced into an awful lot of re-jigging due to the sheer number of injures he has sustained, with Di Maria missing patches throughout the season after suffering muscle strains and tweaks.

It leaves the Dutchman's genuine best XI up for interpretation, but one thing he has made clear is his love for Rooney at flat central midfield.

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Not as a shadow striker, not as a No. 10—Rooney has been playing the deepest he's ever played in his career, but for the odd occasion of playing CM under Sir Alex Ferguson and David Moyes.

Van Gaal has a history and a reputation for changing player positions (see: Bastian Schweinsteiger, from winger to midfield general), and Rooney may well be his next project.

The role Rooney now fulfils is somewhat akin to Frank Lampard's trademark at Chelsea, and no game illustrates that better than the 3-0 home victory over Liverpool on December 14.

His and United's opening goal sees Rooney arrive late on the edge of the box, surging from deep at a delayed rate to the attack at hand to finish off a low ball across the box following Antonio Valencia's pass.

Had he been playing further forward, he'd never have been able to run on to the pass. It's a delivery only available if you have a Lampard-esque runner on the edge of the "D."

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In addition to this handy habit, Rooney has shown throughout his career that he has all the attributes to play in this role at the highest level—even if he doesn't actually want to.

His long-range passing can be exquisite, his physique allows him to hold his own and his tenacity can turn the tide of a game. His tackling isn't perfect, but he's not playing in Daley Blind's position (yet!).

Perhaps most importantly, Rooney's captain's armband may have convinced Van Gaal that he needs to play in the middle. Captains are rarely much use stuck at either end of the pitch—a reason why many managers steer clear of strikers and goalkeepers when electing one.

The "requirement," of sorts, to play Rooney in central midfield, and the need to play a defensive-minded colleague next to him (Daley Blind, Michael Carrick), has removed the option of playing Di Maria centrally—particularly in the 3-5-2, where there are only two central midfield spots.

Instead, the Argentine has been used on either wing or indeed as a shadow striker with his back to goal.

The results have hardly been pretty. He was really quite terrible—like a fish out of water—against Queens Park Rangers when deployed off Radamel Falcao, and playing from the wide areas, he cannot justify his huge price tag. He is a £60 million central midfielder, but more a £30 million winger.

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Van Gaal has prioritised Rooney centrally over Di Maria centrally while largely foregoing the chance to play a midfield diamond and utilise them together. It's a quizzical choice that reinforces the idea he's being very, very stubborn, and it's impacting the latter's career at Manchester United rather heavily.

Critically, it's been Rooney's excellence in a Lampard-esque role that has frozen or devalued Di Maria. In a straight shootout, the Argentinian brings more to the position—his near-unfathomable dribbling ability puts defences in stitches—but he's vying for a spot in place of the captain.

The retooling of Rooney, in addition to the will of Van Gaal, has disturbed and disadvantaged what should have been a brilliant season for Di Maria.

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