How Manchester United Should Lineup Vs Barcelona At Nou Camp

Manchester United are pretty much looking to cause one of the biggest upsets in Champions League football tonight. This match will be particularly important for United to win since their top four ambitions seem to be fading and their only hope for Champions League football next season is winning the trophy this season. They, of course, have to get past Barcelona first of all.

Ole Gunnar will have to pick up a side that is ready and fit to fight for this game and ensure that they come out of it with a win. Despite performing dismally in their last couple of games, there's still hope for the team and though this tie may be hard, they can still win it.

The team is likely to be without a number of first-team stars, first of all, Ander Herrera and Antonio Valencia remain injured and are unlikely to play any role in this tie. On the other hand, the manager can call on Alexis Sanchez and Nemanja Matic as they have both been passed fit for this game.

Then the other player that's going to miss this tie is Luke Shaw who is suspended. With those three out, Ole Gunnar will have some major calls to make here against Barca. The likes of Matteo Darmian and Marcos Rojo are likely to have rare starts in here.

Eitherway, the team is expected to continue lining up in a 4-3-3 formation and here are the likely starters.

Goalkeeper:

Paris Saint-Germain v Manchester United - UEFA Champions League Round of 16: Second Leg

David De Gea is the obvious choice as the starting goalkeeper barring any last minute surprises. Though he has been off form this season, there's simply no reason that Ole has to drop his world-class goalkeeper.

Though his head hasn't been in the game for quite some time this season, with his future at the club not yet sorted out, he still provides Ole Gunnar with the safest pair of hands than the other options. His number one status at the club at the moment seems to be set on stone and if on form will surely frustrate Barca.

Defence:

Manchester United v FC Barcelona - UEFA Champions League Quarter Final: First Leg

The back four is going to have to do with some changes since one of Ole's starter will miss this tie with a suspension. With that in mind, Ole is going to have to make some decisions on who to start in that left back role.

The obvious starter is going to be Ashley Young in the right fullback position and on the other side, the manager is going to have to decide between Diogo Dalot, Marcos Rojo and Matteo Darmian. It is likely that the manager will go for the Argentine Marcos Rojo in this tie since he's, first of all, left-footed and has far more experience playing there.

The two centre back positions are going to be occupied by Chris Smalling and Victor Lindelof. Chris Smalling and Victor Lindelof have developed a good understanding that Ole will want them to continue playing together as many games as possible.

Ashley Young, Chris Smalling, Victor Lindelof, Marcos Rojo.

Midfield:

The midfield is another area that Ole Gunnar has problems that need fixing. Nemanja Matic and Ander Herrera weren't in the team against Barcelona in the first leg and Herrera likely to miss this tie as well. But Matic has been passed fit by the manager and may well just start this tie.

That will leave Ole with a decision to make on who to start with Paul Pogba in the middle of the pack. In the first leg, he started Scott McTominay and Fred with Paul Pogba and kept Andreas Perreira on the bench.

In this tie, he may decide to drop one of the two and start Nemanja Matic who is back fit again instead. So, will it be McTomminay or Fred who is going to be dropped in this tie? With the performance, they both put in the first leg, it's not going to be an easy task. Scot McTominay who was obviously United's best performer will have to be dropped in favour of Matic

Matic will be sitting deep and disrupting the opposition's rhythm and protecting the back four and Fred covering for him with his box-to-box hustle. Fred will also be expected to chip in with some creative plays to help Pogba out from time to time. Pogba is going to continue being the creative force in the middle of the pack as he's been since Ole took over.

Fred, Nemanja Matic, Paul Pogba

Forward:

The forward line didn't perform quite well in the first leg against Barcelona and a lot of people thought that they should have done better.

Here, against Barcelona at Camp Nou, whoever gets selected to start, should be ready to put away the chances that are there early enough and not let the team labour for long. It's obviously going to be tough game playing Barcelona away but the forwards need to pull up.

The forwards will also have to work hard in defence as well to help out the team as is will take a team effort to stop Barcelona.

Romelu Lukaku is expected to drop to the bench after a poor showing against Barcelona in the first leg, with Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial who started that game on the bench likely to be recalled. The lone striker's position is going to be occupied by Marcus Rashford here.

Jesse Lingard, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial

Here's how the team will likely lineup vs Barcelona

Edited by Emeka Monyei