Erik ten Hag has been given £12.8m Manchester United dilemma he might not have expected

Erik ten Hag embraces his players after last month's defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion.
-Credit: (Image: Steve Bardens/Getty Images.)


On paper, Noussair Mazraoui was arguably the most unattractive of Manchester United's five summer signings.

However, on the pitch, he has been their most attractive thus far. The £12.8million recruit from Bayern Munich produced another accomplished display on Saturday, helping United beat Southampton 3-0 at St Mary's.

With the exception of the 3-0 defeat to Liverpool prior to the international break, in which every United player failed to turn up, the Moroccan international has not put a foot wrong thus far. At £12.8m, he is already looking as though he could prove to be a bit of a bargain.

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Deployed at right-back for the fourth game running on Saturday, Mazraoui, who previously worked with Erik ten Hag at Ajax, produced a solid account of himself. As well as being defensively sound, he also displayed signs of being confident enough to venture into attacking positions.

It was his quality with the ball, though, that was the most striking component of his performance, up until being forced with 74 minutes played with what Ten Hag suspected might have been cramp. He completed 86 per cent of his attempted passes, 100 per cent of his long balls and 100 per cent of his take-ons.

His effectiveness with the ball is already making it easy to understand why Ten Hag wanted to be reunited with him in M16. He is capable of progressing the ball, making forward runs and linking up with Amad, who was stationed ahead of him on the right.

He was also strong in his challenges, winning more than half of his ground duels. Defensively he was very astute.

Signed to replace Aaron Wan-Bissaka and to challenge Diogo Dalot at right-back, Mazraoui is already nailing his flag to the mast in the quest to become United's first-choice right-back. Dalot has not played in his natural position so far this season, starting each of United's opening four league games as an emergency left-back.

On Saturday, he was given a testing time by Southampton winger Tyler Dibling and was guilty of fouling him in the first half to concede a penalty, only to be bailed out by Andre Onana, who thwarted Cameron Archer's tame effort.

Southampton's Tyler Dibling tries to get away from Manchester United defender Diogo Dalot.
Diogo Dalot struggled to contain Tyler Dibling (left). -Credit:Zohaib Alam - MUFC/Manchester United via Getty Images.

Dalot, despite being forced to play at left-back several times in the last couple of seasons, has struggled to deliver the goods so far this season. He went missing against Liverpool and he could not handle the threat of Dibling at St Mary's.

He is also restricted in an attacking sense when playing at left-back. He is not as comfortable at driving forward as he usually he is on the right, as highlighted by the assist he provided for Alejandro Garnacho to score United's third goal from the right channel of the penalty area.

Although the positives outweighed the negatives for United on the south coast, the absence of a left-footed presence at left-back was an issue. Both Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia are progressing with their recoveries, and the former will be itching to reclaim his place in the team and make up for lost time once he is given the green light to return.

Shaw, despite his injury problems, is still considered as United's first-choice left-back, and it goes without saying that Ten Hag is a huge fan. Once the England international is deemed fit enough to start, he will do.

That juncture will see Dalot and Mazraoui jockeying for position at right-back. The former has been one of United's most consistent performers throughout the Ten Hag era, but he now has a fight on his hands to remain an automatic starter.

Mazraoui has, albeit only four games in, made a very encouraging start to his United career, and it would be incredibly harsh on him to be axed from the starting XI to accommodate a player who, albeit not in his preferred position, has struggled so far this season.

However, on the flip side, Mazraoui is considered as a versatile full-back, capable of playing on the right and the left of the back-four, meaning he could be tested at left-back if Ten Hag becomes concerned by Dalot's performances.

It does, of course, give Ten Hag options to play with, but Mazraoui's strong start to life at Old Trafford means Dalot is not guaranteed to automatically reclaim the right-back spot once Shaw returns. However, it does seem likely the latter will pick up another injury or two further down the line, which means a window of opportunity may open up for Mazraoui to audition at left-back.

Nevertheless, the former Bayern man's encouraging start to Old Trafford has created a dilemma that Ten Hag might soon be tasked with attempting to solve.