Romelu Lukaku and Zlatan Ibrahimovic playing at the same time,have your say

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Could a potential partnership between Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Romelu Lukaku be the solution to United's big game problem? by sanketc7 @sanketc7 Opinion28 mins ago Leicester City v Manchester United - The FA Community Shield How will Ibrahimovic's return have an impact on Lukaku? Manchester United started the 2017/18 season raising a storm and scoring goals for fun. New club striker Lukaku was in red-hot form and has 12 goals for the club in 18 games, across all competitions, which had the fans going "Zlatan who?" But, the club went through a bad patch of form in late October and early November, part of the problem was a dry spell for Lukaku. So naturally, the news of Pogba and Zlatan's return to the squad excited the fans. But this comes with a question along, Can Mourinho get Zlatan and Lukaku playing together on the same team?

A question like this certainly seems like a good problem to have. Most teams would willingly take on this headache if they could get two players of the calibre of Ibrahimovic and Lukaku. But with Manchester United trying to keep pace with their flying neighbours, the time to test out new tactics and allowing a partnership to grow has passed. If the two forwards have to play on the same team, then Mourinho needs to fine-tune the details immediately. Analysing the style of play of both players gives us a better insight into this conundrum.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic: The perfect hold-up attacker

Manchester United started the 2017/18 season raising a storm and scoring goals for fun. New club striker Lukaku was in red-hot form and has 12 goals for the club in 18 games, across all competitions, which had the fans going "Zlatan who?" But, the club went through a bad patch of form in late October and early November, part of the problem was a dry spell for Lukaku. So naturally, the news of Pogba and Zlatan's return to the squad excited the fans. But this comes with a question along, Can Mourinho get Zlatan and Lukaku playing together on the same team?

A question like this certainly seems like a good problem to have. Most teams would willingly take on this headache if they could get two players of the calibre of Ibrahimovic and Lukaku. But with Manchester United trying to keep pace with their flying neighbours, the time to test out new tactics and allowing a partnership to grow has passed. If the two forwards have to play on the same team, then Mourinho needs to fine-tune the details immediately. Analysing the style of play of both players gives us a better insight into this conundrum.

Romelu Lukaku and the Drogba Dilemma

Romelu Lukaku one of the most misunderstood players in the Premier League. His terrific build and imposing presence, since his Chelsea days, has lead people to compare him to Didier Drogba. But that is nowhere close to how Lukaku plays. The Drogba way of playing was perfect for a team that likes working on the counter-attack. He was a perfect outlet player and if you could clear the ball, he would hold on to the ball and release the runners around him and then follow them into the box where he could be found for the perfect finish. But Lukaku's style makes it impossible for him to perform well in a defensive set up. His style of play was what made Mourinho decide to sell him at Chelsea. Mourinho likes a defensive set up, especially in big games where his team's primary responsibility is to soak up the pressure and keep a clean sheet.

The role of a forward in the same set up is to hold up the ball when it gets cleared and start off the counter-attack. But holding up the ball and playing perfect passes to teammates is not a part of Lukaku's game. That is the problem that has resulted in his bleak stats against the Top 6 teams in the Premier League. Whenever they've punted it long, Lukaku has looked clueless, often not even collecting a long pass properly. The Zlatan role is not something that fans should expect from Lukaku. Lukaku's terrible record against top clubs has been discussed often. But the few people look beyond the stats. Lukaku has played a majority of his Premier League games with West Brom and Everton. Both of these clubs, with all due respect to them, were underdogs against any of the top 6 teams. Lukaku as a striker flourishes when his team holds on to the ball and keeps letting him run off the last defender. But in all the big games that Lukaku has been a part of in the Premier League, he has never had an open, free-flowing game that suited his style. The same problem plagues him in United where the team plays in a compact defensive style against the other teams in the top 6, thereby leaving Lukaku's chances of running behind the defensive line a near impossibility. Though the style has historically worked for Mourinho and his strikers, it doesn't suit Lukaku.

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