Who should play on the right for Manchester United?

It's a funny old game when your club goes for years without signing a natural right winger. Yes, literally more than a decade. That's the situation in Manchester, where the Red Devils have a bevy of sort-of-wingers who really ought not to play on the right. So how can Ole Gunnar Solskjaer square the circle and put out the optimal attacking formation?

We searched, and the closest thing we found to a marquee signing at RW in the past ten years was Angel Di Maria, who's left-footed but now plays primarily inverted. But, you might protest, what about smarterscout young prospect Daniel James? Well, James has always performed better on the left. In fact, he's come close to replicating his attacking output for Swansea at a Premier League standard when playing on the left, despire his speed not being as much of a differentiator in the top flight. On the right, not so much:

Moving James to the right has altered his style, turning him into more of a defender while reducing his ability to get into the box: And yet, he has one of the best defending fullbacks in the league (or really anywhere) behind him in Aaron Wan-Bissaka. Using James as a second striker on the right side of a two up front... you have much to atone for, our Norwegian friend.

Then there's Jesse Lingard. In theory, he can play right wing. But he's actually been much better as a central attacking midfielder... well, not even at that position this season, but in the past:

The reverse has been true for Juan Mata, but he defends... not at all. And Tahith Chong may also turn into a Premier League right winger... someday.

That leaves Mason Greenwood. The teenage sensation can and does play on the right, but fans knock him for being – let's put it gently – rather ineffective as a defender. Yet again, he can have Wan-Bissaka behind him in the right formation. Even better, get the recently recovered Scott McTominay into midfield, helping to cover the right flank. McTominay is an excellent and aggressive defender, and this smartermap shows his range:

Manchester United will still lack width almost any way they play, thanks to the strange machinations of Ed Woodward and company. But we can imagine several possibilities to make the best of the situation, such as a 4-1-3-2 with Anthony Martial and Greenwood up top; a midfield of Fred, Bruno Fernandes, and McTominay behind; then Nemanja Matic in front of the back four. A more adventurous lineup might feature Martial at CF – though he's really better at LW – in a 4-3-3 with James on the left and Greenwood on the right, both in their proper positions. Matic would drop out of the XI.

You could even imagine using Fernandes as a false nine, or using Brandon Williams as a LWB with three at the back... okay, we'll quit while we're ahead, but we think there's a little more room for creativity. Will Solskjaer take the opportunity to show how versatile a coach he can be?

[Photo: Fanny Schertzer]