Former Manchester United coach René Meulensteen says that his old team must adapt their style if they are to get a positive result in the Manchester derby tomorrow.
Former manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had a good record against Pep Guardiola, recording some famous wins, but the 2-0 defeat to City in November was a horror show which contributed hugely to his sacking.
On the day United were meek, but Guardiola exploited every weakness of his opponent to turn the game into little more than a training session. City have not been in their best form of late – losing to Spurs, and having to work to get a win at Everton, but Meulensteen believes that will count for little tomorrow.
“People say City are not playing as well – but in his last game against us, Guardiola’s strategy which he deployed was the highest and most intense press he could find,” Meulensteen told TalkOfTheDevils.co.uk exclusively. “He wanted to suffocate United to not even play the counter attack and that’s exactly what he’s going to do on Sunday.”
“If United from the first moment have the intention to play out from the back – and they probably will – City will do the same to them. You will have to hope that City aren’t playing well. Guardiola’s not daft, the players aren’t daft. There’s pressure on them. The best way to get rid of the pressure is to go full throttle against us. They’ll want the ball so we can’t get out at them.”
Ralf Rangnick has earned praise and critics for the stabilising of the form and performances since his arrival. Some results have been very poor but those wishing to see the positive side have heralded United’s domination of the games they have not won. It sets up an interesting dynamic – does the interim manager stay true to his own system? Does he revert to the tactics often used by Solskjaer to try and win on the counter attack, even if some of those players aren’t available or at the club?
Meulensteen believes that United’s best chance of success is to match them for aggression as early as possible.
“If United forget that (City’s approach) and push up and go long for the first half,” he says, “if they decide to press City in their half and then drop the defenders deep enough to play around when they get the ball, that would be the way I’d start the game, because you can’t win it in the first half hour – but you can lose it.”
On this Friday’s Talking Devils podcast with former United players Lee Lawrence and Phil Marsh, the panel discussed Rene’s comments. You can watch that here.
