This season, Manchester United has made more mistakes than a Formula One driver. Time and time again, they have lifted the spirits at Old Trafford with a powerful performance, only to clumsily blow it all away in their subsequent game.

That was especially the case this past weekend, as the Red Devils virtually eliminated any realistic aspirations of qualifying for the Champions League by losing to a failing Brentford team, two weeks after winning an exciting 4-3 FA Cup match at home against rivals Liverpool.

Just a few seconds away from what could have been an incredibly undeserved smash-and-grab victory at the Gtech, the visitors crumbled in typical United form, with Kristoffer Ajer putting the pressure back on Erik ten Hag, who some believe is now a “dead man walking” as summer approaches.

For all the tactical questions that can be raised about the former Ajax manager, injuries have undoubtedly not helped the Dutchman during this miserable season.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s appalling 2/10 performance, as described by Manchester Evening News writer Samuel Luckhurst, once again exposed the problems at left-back.

Considering that, let’s take a peek at the ‘options’ Ten Hag has available to cover that problem position while Luke Shaw and the mostly unknown Tyrell Malacia are away.

1 The Clearly Better Choice Diogo DalotDalot, Garcia-Man, United, Bayern, Ten, Hag A frightening performance on Saturday night saw Wan-Bissaka lose the ball on 12 occasions, exposing his deficiencies as a makeshift left-back. Just two weeks prior, he had done admirably against Mohamed Salah.

Then, considering that Diogo Dalot has slotted in on the left on 35 times in his career, it could make more sense to move the former Crystal Palace player to the obvious flank going ahead.

Although the Portuguese ace is currently playing brilliantly on the right (possibly emerging as Ten Hag’s “best player” of late), he may be one of the few realistic options to Shaw and Malacia given that he scored in that left-sided role against Nottingham Forest last season and against Wigan Athletic this season at the City Ground in the Premier League. The Tactical Adjustment Martinez LisandroLisandro Martinez, United Kingdom Given that Lisandro Martinez, dubbed the “monster” by Shaw, is the only senior left-footed defender now available at the club, Ten Hag may want to try the Argentine at left-back given the recent injury concerns surrounding Victor Lindelof and Raphael Varane at center-back.

The World Cup winner returned from an eight-week sabbatical against the Bees as a late substitution, but not before making a difficult cameo after being limited to only 13 touches and losing every battle.

Martinez needs playing time to fully recover from his injury, so starting him at left back could not be the worst option, especially given his natural ability with the ball—he is in the top 6% of his European colleagues for pass completion over the past 365 days, according to FBref.

The 5 foot 10 menace’s ability to carry the ball out from the back is what really makes him stand out. This is demonstrated by the fact that he ranks in the top 7% for assists and the top 6% for successful take-ons per 90, which means he can provide Marcus Rashford and other players on the left flank with a release point.

While it is not ideal to remove the star center-back from the core of the backline, Ten Hag has few other options when things get serious. 3. Using a Wildcard Harry Amass Considering that 16-year-old Lamine Yamal is excelling at Barcelona right now, Harry Amass, a former Watford prospect who is thriving in the youth levels at left-back, may be United’s own gifted young player. Although it would be a risky move to select a player who is only 17 years old, journalist Alex Turk claims that Amass is already seen as “Luke Shaw’s successor” after a strong first half-year in Manchester. The England U17 international made his debut for the U21 team against Middlesbrough back in early March. In 14 U18 Premier League games in 2023–24, he has scored once and contributed three assists. There are worse options than giving Amass a chance in the upcoming weeks, given the success of recent promotions to players like Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho, who also once benefited from an injury crisis in the first team, and a youthful Rashford.