Analyzing Manchester United's 5 centre-backs

I am not sure why Mourinho claims that he does not still know what his best centre-ack partnership is.

It’s been 3 years and he has pretty much had the same set of defenders to play with and choose between. I am no manager, but how hard can it be?

There are two ways to look at this. You either go by statistics or you go by you managerial instincts, which after so many years in the game, would be pretty sound.

So who are the guys in question? Smalling, Jones, Bailly, Lindelöf and Rojo.

All 5 are natural centre-backs. All five are relatively experienced players. Some, despite their age.

Let’s take a look at the guys individually, shall we?

1. Chris Smalling

Chris Smalling or Mike Smalling, whichever you may call him has been at United for 8 years now. He was brought in by Sir Alex after being a stellar defender for Fulham. Smalling has survived 4 different managers in his time at United.

Tall, well built, physically dominant, he is what you expect a typical centre back to be like. Smalling, now 28 is probably on the wrong side of the 20’s, but still very much capable of putting in a strong defensive performance, match after match.

Smalling was initially brought in to replace the ageing duo of Vidic and Ferdinand, though he certainly did not continue that legacy. With time, he has ended up captaining United as well under Van Gaal, who claimed that Smalling was a good leader to have in your defence, shouting around and commanding the others.

Smalling has a good jump in both the defensive and offensive halves of the pitch. He isn’t afraid to tackle and not easily taken down. He has been guilty of errors in the past, but overall a defender good to have in the squad.

What probably goes against him is that in his 200 odd appearances for United, he has only 63 clean sheets. While he cannot entirely be blamed for it, not the best record to have for a centre back. He has also got a good 70% tackle success rate and has won more than double the number of aerial duels than he has lost.

2. Phil Jones

Again, been in the United system for a long time. Again, brought in by Sir Alex, after watching him play against United in the Premier League. Fergie was impressed by the lad’s defensive and leadership capabilities. A big difference between Jones and Smalling is that Jones is probably better at distribution and into better spaces.

Jones’ distribution is often to the midfield players, your Pogbas and your Matics. His defensive prowess however is pretty similar to Smalling. They are pretty much made in the same shape. Tall, muscular and loud. For some reason, Jones reminds me of Vidic. Not sure why, but there is something about him.

Now, in no way am I saying that he is as good as Vidic. Vidic is a legend. Vidic is god mode. But Jones can probably get there. What hasn’t worked for Jones is an injury-prone career. Far too many injuries, far too much time out.

Hence not some you could rely on to play 38 games a season. But a good man to have on the team. With a 72% tackle success rate, he is surely an asset. But he needs to be fit more often and needs to command the respect from Mourinho.

While Jones is not the best in the air, he does have the knack of going behind almost lost balls and getting in a crucial touch to deviate the ball from an incoming forward’s feet. The previous sentence is also the inspiration for the many Jones memes you may have seen on the internet. Good distribution, strong tackling ability and potential leadership skills make him a hard man to ignore.

3. Eric Bailly

He is probably my favorite player at United right now, along with Rashford and De Gea of course. First and foremost, the man is a beast. Standing at 6’2, he is a no-nonsense defender. Centrebacks are often in pairs because one is supposed to take the lead and focus on most defending, whereas the other lot, called the ‘carriers’, often have another job to do such as putting in the through balls and starting play.

Bailly is most certainly a defender of the first type. Direct, versatile and physical, he is what you would call a classic centre back. Also, very hard to get past. While I have no clue why Mourinho does not play him enough, he is certainly the centre back, United could hold on to for many years and turn into a club legend.

What works for Bailly is that he is only 24. His prime is yet to come and he has already shown a lot of promise. Picked out of obscurity, while playing a local tournament in Burkina Faso, he has played his way to the top, through Espanyol B, Espanyol and Villareal, till United shelled out 30Mn for his services.

Bailly though has only played close to 140 games in his career till now, so there is a lot more football left in him. But what has undeniable has, is talent and lots of it. Bailly is probably United’s best centre back at this point.

4. Victor Lindelöf

Lindelöf’s is a curious case. He just does not look in place at United. Brought in for good money from Benfica, he has not justified his price tag. Lindelöf’s time at United has been scrappy, to say the least. A bigger problem though is that he is naturally down the pecking order due to genuine football skills.

While he has been ever-present for Benfica and Sweden in the past, he just does not exude confidence. A good to have defender in the ranks, but a 50% tackle success rate just won’t work for a team where 5 players are battling for 2 centre back spots.

Also, despite his 6’2 frame, he has a tendency to lose aerial duels and statistically he has lost more aerial duels than won. Not good enough. Simple. Maybe with time, he can find the best in himself, but at the moment he is probably not United’s best bet.

5. Marcos Rojo

Rojo has been at United for 4 years. While he is a good defender in his own right, he is probably on his way out from United. Rojo though has some crazy numbers to support his case. He has only lost 9 games in which he has featured.

He has never made an error leading to a goal. He has a healthy 72% tackle success rate. Of all the defenders mentioned here, he also has the best passing rate in the team. He has a good 50 passes per match. Also interesting is that he is extremely adept at playing left back, which he has done for Argentina on many occasions and on and off for United Age, however, is not on his side.

At 28 and having given 4 years to United and being injury prone, it is probably a good time to offload him. Especially with Everton and Wolves interested in his service. He has come close to justifying his 16Mn price tag. But again, 16Mn is not much for a defender compared to what clubs are shelling out today.

In my opinion, the best pair in United would Bailly and Jones, with Smalling being a good cover for the team. Also not to forget United has sent two promising kids in Tim Fosu Mensah and Axel Tuanzabe out on loan. Once back, and for the next seasons the two of these could become vital cogs of the United defensive wheel.