"How Man Utd's 'Phantom Offside' Strategy Could Leave Aston Villa Confounded as Carrick Aims to Upset Champions League Hopefuls"

MANCHESTER UNITED face Aston Villa this weekend in a crunch clash which could prove pivotal for the Champions League race.

The last time we covered ‘s on , they were in a commanding position in the top three and looked dead set to qualify for the next season.

Michael Carrick has a big call to make in his starting lineup against Aston VillaCredit: Getty Bryan Mbeumo could be thrust back into the spotlight despite his relative poor formCredit: Alamy

Fast forward to today, and Villa find their place in the qualification spots in serious jeopardy.

They are in fourth, behind on goal difference, and just three points above and , who are fifth and sixth respectively.

When United and Villa meet at on Sunday, will be desperate to see the hosts bounce back after losing at in their last game, while Villa are eyeing their first league win since February 11.

Team selection will be key, and Carrick may need to make a particularly big call in personnel and tactics.

SunSport’s tactics guru Dean Scoggins has returned to the studio to preview the game.

Dean is also back with a lesson learned the hard way: please take your wedding ring off when playing sports, and do not climb fences, or else you may end up with your finger being amputated.

United’s best attack v Villa?

It’s no secret how Emery wants Villa to play, with a high line pushed up as high as possible to squeeze the opposition and form a box midfield with their centre-backs and centre-midfielders.

In recent weeks, the boldness to stick with that has been to their detriment.

With some key players sidelined, Villa have not had enough pressure on the ball in the front third, allowing opposition teams to get the ball deep and put the ball in behind the defensive line.

And because the press is detached, it means rival players have the space to pick the pass to beat the offside trap, which Chelsea did really well.

Not putting pressure on the ball in those areas is criminal at any level, and Villa cannot afford to play an offside trap without doing so.

Despite having the most goals of any player in 2026, Carrick will be tempted to play against Villa by bringing back into the starting XI and moving into the middle again.

This worked a treat against and , and that same sort of game plan could be executed again on Sunday.

United could even deploy a “fake offside trick”, where the centre-forward runs offside and Villa hold their line before the ball is played in behind for one of the wingers.

The winger would then have an option in the middle of the pitch to cross to straight away.

United previously felt the sting of this tactic against Liverpool, with the likes of , and making sacrificial runs to drop the line slightly before another run which will remain onside.

What’s happened to Mbeumo?

The previous point of Mbeumo playing through the middle does need to be caveated with an explanation on what has happened to the United man’s recent form.

His last goal came against Tottenham, while he also registered two assists in consecutive games after that.

But those watching week in week out will know Mbeumo hasn’t been firing on all cylinders.

And part of that is down to him being redeployed as a right winger as opposed to a striker.

He enjoyed a brilliant link with when through the middle, but out wide, he has been starved of that same link.

Unai Emery’s side are bold and uncompromising in the way they have played despite injury problemsCredit: Reuters Getting Mbeumo back in touch with Bruno Fernandes might be key to United getting back to winning waysCredit: Reuters

Intensity when playing more than one game a week has also been a factor, with the hard yards being put in on the pressing and tracking back leaving him tired.

United won’t have played for a week and a half when they face Villa, while the visitors beat Lille 1-0 on Thursday.

Mbeumo and Fernandes being close together creates space for others, whether that’s , Amad, or Sesko.

The added freshness, paired with Mbeumo no longer being isolated out wide, should help United be far more fluid.

Is it a player issue? A system issue? This game could be a telltale sign one way or the other.

Deano also analysed United’s last game against Newcastle, and why they kept going long against the Magpies.

United are badly missing Lisandro Martinez, and there is an argument to start at centre-back due to the struggles they are having playing out without a left-footer at their core.

You can watch that explanation in brilliant detail in by clicking the video at the top of this article or by watching Tactics Exposed on the SunSport YouTube channel.