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Manchester United: Louis van Gaal’s 5 Strangest Tactical Decisions

By Chris Fleming

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MARCH 17: Manager Louis van Gaal of Manchester United walks off at halftime during the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 Second Leg match between Manchester United and Liverpool at Old Trafford on March 17, 2016 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by John Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images)
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MARCH 17: Manager Louis van Gaal of Manchester United walks off at halftime during the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 Second Leg match between Manchester United and Liverpool at Old Trafford on March 17, 2016 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by John Peters/Man Utd via Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 17: James Wilson of Manchester United scores his team’s second goal past Robert Green of QPR during the Barclays Premier League match between Queens Park Rangers and Manchester United at Loftus Road on January 17, 2015 in London, England. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 17: James Wilson of Manchester United scores his team’s second goal past Robert Green of QPR during the Barclays Premier League match between Queens Park Rangers and Manchester United at Loftus Road on January 17, 2015 in London, England. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) /

5. QPR 0-2 Manchester United

Kicking off the top five with a win might seem odd.

However, this was the game that saw Phil Jones assigned corner-kick duties. That alone was bewildering, but really it was only the tip of the iceberg.

At Loftus Road in January 2015, United lined up in a 3-5-2 formation against a team battling relegation. Equally concerning was the fact that Angel Di Maria was used a striker and, unsurprisingly, he failed to have any real impact on the game.

A poor first-half performance was met with chants of “attack, attack, attack” and “4-4-2, 4-4-2, 4-4-2” from the United fans. Whether Van Gaal listened or not, he introduced Marouane Fellaini at half-time, James Wilson 10 minutes later, and switched to something resembling a 4-4-2.

Both Fellaini and Wilson scored to win the game for United, but the tactical mess in the first hour or so of the game was extraordinary.

Next: Wolfsburg 3-2 United

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