Manchester United’s attacking trio looked to have finally found a way of playing together (Picture: Getty Images)

One of the recurring criticisms of Manchester United under David Moyes’ stewardship has been a perceived lack of identity in terms of playing style.

United have long been known for their swashbuckling attacking play, utilising quick wingers on either flank. However, under Moyes supporters have seen multiple systems and different playing styles.

Yet in Saturday’s victory over Crystal Palace the Scotsman experimented yet again, with fantastic results.

A recent worry for Manchester United supporters has been where to fit Juan Mata into a central position with Wayne Rooney the likely first choice to occupy the central attacking role just behind either Robin van Persie or Danny Welbeck.




On his debut against Cardiff City we saw Mata at his finest with the Spaniard dictating all of United’s play in the final third from a very central position and as a result the team looked likely to break an opponent down.

Since the Cardiff fixture Mata has found it difficult to acclimatise to being positioned on either the left or the right flank, with Rooney stationed in the centre.

This has been obvious for supporters to see with Mata’s style of build-up play not in sync with Patrice Evra or Rafael’s respective styles. After a frustrating display at Arsenal there must have been recognition by Moyes that United have to start playing through Mata, and for that to be effective he has to be in the centre.

At Selhurst Park on Saturday set against a backdrop of Eric Cantona related angst, Manchester United controlled a football match and got an excellent result.

The visitors dominated possession for long periods but what was particularly interesting was the way Moyes set the team up in terms of player positioning.

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David Moyes has used multiple systems this year (Picture: Getty Images)

Adnan Januzaj reclaimed his spot on the left hand side whilst Wayne Rooney sat rather central. Many saw the teamsheet prior to kick off and thought Mata would be positioned on the right hand side, however, that was not to be the case.

What we saw was a very fluid and very continental looking United.

Van Persie actually played just on the right hand side, almost as a right sided forward, whilst Rooney returned to his role as a central striker which left Mata free to occupy the entirety of the space just off Rooney.

The fluidity in movement between the four players was just what United supporters had been hoping for with van Persie’s runs from the right taking away a defender and leaving a gap for Mata to slot into in behind.

What this allowed for was some exciting attacking football, not in the traditional United sense but in a forward thinking, European style. With a number of additions expected in the summer transfer window, the team setup at Crystal Palace on Saturday could well usher in a new direction at United under Moyes.

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