Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has now explained why he decided to play left-back Luke Shaw at centre-back up against Erling Haaland in their derby triumph over Manchester City.
Ten Hag has turned the tide on United's fortunes this season after the side got off to a disappointing start to his tenure, when they lost their two opening 2022/23 Premier League fixtures, including an embarrassing 4-0 defeat to Brentford.
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The Red Devils have gradually improved ever since, and are unbeaten in four EPL games since the end of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Their 2-1 victory over crosstown rivals City this past weekend was also their ninth victory in a row, their longest winning streak since the 2016/17 season under Jose Mourinho.
For the match against the Citizens, Ten Hag made the surprise decision to play a natural left-back, Shaw, in the heart of the defence against the league's leading marksman Haaland, despite having three traditional centre-backs on the bench, namely Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire, and Lisandro Martinez.
The decision worked out well, though, as the reigning English champions were restricted to just one shot on target, with Shaw playing a key role alongside Frenchman Raphael Varane.
Ten Hag has now explained why he entrusted the England international with the role in a such a high stakes match.
"It is a big decision but I think when you analyse the profile of (Erling) Haaland and the combination with (Kevin) De Bruyne, it was also the right decision," Ten Hag said, according to Manchester Evening News.
"Because Luke has the physical power to compete with them and also has the tactical view to make the right decision and technical skills to play in that position.
"So I think it matched really well, but I think in other games he can contribute even more on the left in the wide positions, so it's a tactical choice and we can see from game to game what we need.
"And I think we have more players in our squad who have the capacity to be multi-functional and we can use that as a weapon in games."
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The Red Devils' next match is against Crystal Palace on Wednesday night, and victory could move them from fourth to second place on the log, ahead of Newcastle United and the Citizens.
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