Why Ander Herrera's Manchester United Position Is Under Threat from New Boys

Manchester United's summer signings are good news for the club, but perhaps slightly less good news for Ander Herrera—in the short term, at least.

The opening day of the season saw Herrera relegated to the bench in favour of Memphis Depay and Morgan Schneiderlin. He came on toward the end of the game, replacing the club's new No. 7 in a positionally—if not stylistically—like-for-like substitution.

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The 4-2-3-1 system with which Louis van Gaal has begun the season offers a good deal of structural defensive stability. Michael Carrick and Schneiderlin are currently acting as holding midfielders, and both Ashley Young and Juan Mata put in a defensive shift from the flanks.

The holding midfielders' approach to their role is markedly different. As Schneiderlin demonstrated on his debut, he is much more inclined to press the opposition, using his physicality to get close when opponents are in possession. Carrick's default, on the other hand, is to drop back and cover space.

Herrera could play the Schneiderlin role in that partnership, although playing him so deep and asking him to prize defence over attack is probably not playing to his strengths.

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While he is more than willing to put his body on the line and throw himself into a tackle, it is his ability to add speed of thought to United's attacking unit that was his biggest contribution in his first season at Old Trafford. That speed of thought translated to quicker ball movement among United's forwards, making the Red Devils less predictable in possession.

In theory, the 4-2-3-1 should also offers plenty of attacking possibilities, although as I wrote after the Tottenham Hotspur game, the attacking unit has not yet clicked. Van Gaal clearly sees Memphis as a No. 10, although he has spent much of his career as a left-forward in a 4-3-3. 

Indeed, during the 2014 World Cup, Van Gaal would switch his Netherlands side back to their traditional 4-3-3 when he brought Memphis on, allowing the youngster to play in his natural position.

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However, that has not been his course of action at United. Whatever the reasons for it—whether he believes in Memphis' abilities at No. 10 or is looking for a structurally sound defensive shape to compensate for the defensive limitations of his centre-half partnership—it is Herrera who has been sacrificed to make way for the new boys.

Bastian Schweinsteiger's arrival further complicates things for Herrera in that he is yet another quality player who can occupy a position Herrera otherwise would.

However, in spite of all of this, the earlier reference to the "short term" was made deliberately.

Last season, Herrera was iced out by Van Gaal for several months. However, he eventually forced himself back into the side and made himself indispensable. It seems entirely plausible that will happen again—particularly if United's attacking unit do not improve quickly.

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There are other players affected by the new arrivals. Marouane Fellaini is suspended for the opening three games of the season, but it is hard to see exactly where he would fit into United's current starting XI, in spite of his good season last time out.

He represents a reasonable Plan B option from the bench but does not seem likely to usurp either of the defensive midfielders or make the No. 10 position his own.

The other player potentially under threat is Young. Indeed, while Schneiderlin and Memphis are occupying Herrera's likely positions, Young is on the list of players keeping Herrera out of the side.

He is currently playing in Memphis' historic position on the pitch, presumably because Van Gaal values his defensive contribution and work rate. If Memphis were to replace Young, Herrera could slot in nicely behind Rooney.

There is a lot of football ahead this season, and getting hung up on the first game is probably a mistake, but it does seem to send a significant signal that Van Gaal so quickly turned his back on one of last season's best outfield players.

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The Stretford End made their positive feelings for Herrera abundantly clear after he came onto the pitch on Saturday. Many United fans will be eagerly awaiting Van Gaal's sacrifice of a player other than Herrera to the influx of new talent. Here's to hoping that happens sooner rather than later.