5 things that have gone wrong with Manchester United's season

#4 The team needs better full-backs

The Ecuadorian has been brilliant but is getting on in years

Two of the gaping holes in Manchester United’s squad is the full-back positions. When a team expects to challenge for the title and yet plays 32-year-old players as the left back and right back, you have got to accept that there are serious issues in those positions.

Luke Shaw, who was once the world’s most expensive defender, has failed to recreate his form at Southampton and suffered lots of injuries.

Ashley Young once admitted in an interview, that he would prefer playing as a winger than a fullback since fullbacks at the Old Trafford side are expected to cover the entire length of the field.

Young, who is a winger-turned-fullback just like Valencia, rose to prominence this season after putting in a few fine displays of attacking impetus and defensive gumption.

The problem is, there isn’t enough service to supplement the creative players in the advanced roles. United have traditionally been a team that can create chances through the middle and through the flanks.

Whenever the fullbacks have a quiet game, the pressure on the attacking midfielders and the playmaker increases to provide service to the striker.

And particularly, in situations when there isn’t enough service from the three behind the number 9, full-backs need to step up and provide more service into the box.

Unfortunately, even though Young (1 assist) and Valencia (0 assists) have carried out their defensive duties admirably, their service into the box are nowhere near Cesar Azpilicueta of Chelsea (5 assists), Kieran Trippier of Tottenham Hotspurs (4 assists) and Kyle Walker of Manchester City (4 assists).