Defence Is Manchester United's Biggest Area of Concern Ahead of New Season

It is possible that Jose Mourinho has some kind of secret plan to offset the apparent frailties in Manchester United's defence. Having vastly strengthened his attacking and attacking midfield options, only one new defender has arrived this summer.

And that defender is Eric Bailly. His performance in the Community Shield earned him the Man of the Match award, meaning his picture was displayed on the outside of the stadium as fans filed out of Wembley, no doubt a proud moment.

However, it was a slightly generous award, given his was not a performance free from concerns. He made eye-catching and important contributions, certainly, dispossessing Jamie Vardy with a couple of superbly timed tackles, for example.

But there were a couple of pretty rash fouls and rush-of-blood-to-the-head moments, particularly when he lost his boot and launched his knee into a Leicester City player. In truth, in a Premier League game he would have been lucky not to add a second booking to the one he picked up.

His talent looks undeniable, but at just 22 years old it is no surprise that there are some rough edges. Bailly's ideal central-defensive partner, then, would be a senior, relatively mistake-free leader of a defender.

The kind Chris Smalling cannot yet claim to be.

After a calender year of excellent form in 2015, the latter part of last season saw some mistakes creep back into his game.

There were moments of uncertainty shared with Daley Blind like the header both men went up for against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane that led to a goal conceded moments later. All in all, the solidity he had offered at the end of 2014/15 and the start of 2015/16 ebbed away.

Which is not to say he cannot get it back, but he has not yet proved himself as the heir-apparent to Nemanja Vidic United need him to be.

Early on in pre-season, Jamie Jackson reported in the Guardian that Smalling and Phil Jones, "have been informed they start the term as the first-choice pairing."

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Perhaps Mourinho has changed his mind, because the two men have not started a single pre-season game together. Smalling picked up a knock, but by the time both Wayne Rooney's testimonial against Everton and the Community Shield rolled around, it was Blind and Bailly who started at the heart of United's defence.

Seeing Blind at centre-back at all under Mourinho has come as something of a surprise.

Whereas, say, Pep Guardiola might have shared Louis van Gaal's decision to back Blind's ability on the ball and positional intelligence over defensive experience or physicality, Mourinho has made it clear in his first press conference as United boss that he prefers "specialists."

Nowhere in his career—and certainly not during his time in the Premier League at Chelsea—is there a Blind analogue in a Mourinho defence.

From an academic perspective, it would be fascinating to see how the manager could shape and develop Blind's understanding of the role. After all, he has proved adaptable, and was excellent against Leicester City, albeit that game was firmly part of pre-season rather than the serious, competitive business of the Premier League.

However, it still instinctively feels like a long shot. And in spite of his prominent role in pre-season, the Netherlands international has still repeatedly been linked with a move away.

Indeed Giles Mole and JJ Bull of the Telegraph report: "According to Milan-based Mediaset Premium, former Ajax boss De Boer has already requested Blind to his directors, with a £17 million bid thought to be on the cards."

If the club were to let Blind go, following the departure of Van Gaal's backup option Paddy McNair, United would be left short. Unless Mourinho is planning to use Axel Tuanzebe and Timothy Fosu-Mensah as cover, United would be left with senior perennial injury magnet Jones, deputy perennial injury magnet Marcos Rojo, Bailly and Smalling in the ranks.

And Rojo is also on the list of players Mourinho would be happy to let go, according to Jason Burt of the Telegraph. 

Even if he is not moved on, nothing about his United career so far suggests he can fulfil the duties of a Mourinho centre-half. He has had the odd good game there but has regularly been injured, and he is also prone to lapses of concentration and judgement. His aggression can get the better of him, too.

The possibility exists that the new manager will be a better fit for some of these players than Van Gaal was. Tasked with a simpler set of instructions, less cerebral and more direct, an unexpected player could thrive. If Jones can stay fit, perhaps some of that vast potential he showed in his early years can finally come to the fore.

But relying on the current crop to do the job is at the very least a risky prospect.

Hopefully, it will not be the factor on which United's success rests this season. The defence may have only received minor alterations in this summer's transfer window, but the rest of the team has had a massive injection of quality. Paul Pogba, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan scored or assisted 97 league goals last season between them.

The 4-2-3-1 system United will start the season playing offers plenty of protection to the centre-backs, too. Michael Carrick has made a career of screening passes before they reach defenders, and in Morgan Schneiderlin, Ander Herrera and Pogba, there is plenty of power and tenacity to play alongside him.

At left-back, Luke Shaw will no doubt continue to provide an excellent level of cover, and Antonio Valencia has impressed in pre-season, though doubts will remain about his defensive abilities until he proves he has finally learned the nuances of the right-back position he has latterly adopted.

So even without a secret plan, it should be possible for Mourinho to mitigate some of the concerns through coaching and tactics.

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But those concerns remain, and while their quality and fundamental suitability for the role may be in some doubt, losing both Blind and Rojo in the transfer window would leave United pretty short of options.

It would seem almost ungrateful at this point to expect more out of the Red Devils in the transfer market this summer. Having engineered quite possibly the biggest upgrade in quality in the squad in a single window in the club's history, pointing out that they are still a bit short at centre-back seems a bit churlish.

But it is true. There are other issues in terms of how well the attack will jell, and Rooney's role in the side, for example, but on paper, the biggest weakness in the side is the heart of defence. Bailly will improve over time, and Mourinho could improve Smalling in particular, but none of this looks like the finished product just yet.

Although the heart of defence remains an issue, there are lots of shiny new additions further up the pitch that will give United fans plenty to occupy their attentions. The squad looks set up for a promising season indeed.