Manchester United's Formation vs. Sunderland Seems to Confuse Everyone

Manchester United named a strong XI to face Sunderland in the Premier League on Saturday—but nobody seemed quite sure what formation Louis van Gaal had set them up to play in.

"

United XI: De Gea, Valencia, Smalling, Evans, Rojo, Blind, Herrera, Young, Di Maria, Rooney, Falcao. #mufclive pic.twitter.com/C5xeU43Ugc

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) February 28, 2015"

One journalist, Miguel Delaney, began by saying it was 4-3-3:

"

United's formation seems to be 4-3-3, with Rooney at 10, Young and Di Maria wide forwards.

— Miguel Delaney (@MiguelDelaney) February 28, 2015"

Another, James Ducker from The Times, reckoned it was an experiment with 4-2-3-1:

"

United playing 4-2-3-1 for first time this season. Their seventh different formation of the campaign #MUFC #SAFC

— James Ducker (@DuckerTheTimes) February 28, 2015"

Meanwhile, other journalists, such as Tom Williams, were hedging their bets:

"

So that's United lining up in a 4-3-3/4-4-2/4-2-3-1.

— Tom Williams (@tomwfootball) February 28, 2015"

Dutch analyst Elko Born gave the tactics a positive spin, saying the formation itself didn't matter:

"

I like how United could be lining up in 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 and no one really knows. Shows how it's about the system, not formation

— Elko Born (@Elko_B) February 28, 2015"

But others were not so kind:

"

Seen four different takes on what formation United are playing. Bring back the dress, all is forgiven.

— Darren Richman (@darrenrichman) February 28, 2015"

[Twitter]