Manchester United must address imbalanced midfield in transfer window, says Gary Neville

Paul Pogba started on the left wing in United’s 4-2 defeat against Liverpool

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer started Paul Pogba on the left (Getty Images)

Gary Neville believes Manchester United’s disjointed midfield display during their 4-2 defeat by Liverpool evidenced a key problem Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is yet to address.

Solskjaer denied that his side were lacking motivation, with a top-four finish already secure and focus now on their upcoming Europa League final, yet some of side’s existing problems were laid bare in a chastening loss.

Neville pointed to the use of Paul Pogba on the left creating an imbalance and suggested the club must go into the market for a conventional winger after their failed pursuit of Jadon Sancho last summer.

“One of the issues Man Utd have is that when they pick Paul Pogba on the left it means Marcus Rashford has to go over to the right and the balance of the team fails - we’ve seen it too many times now,” Neville said. “It’s something that needs fixing.”

“Manchester United need that right-hand side option. And Ole Gunnar Solskjaer needs to work out if Paul Pogba can play in the centre of midfield or not in big games.

“If he is not then the whole balance of the team shifts when he is put on the left and Rashford has to go to the right. It’s just obvious that the whole team are better [following the introduction of Greenwood and Rashford’s switch to the left].”

Without captain Harry Maguire in defence, United were exposed repeatedly by Liverpool’s front three and the scoreline could have been far greater if not for some wasteful finishing.

“The lack of Harry Maguire’s presence in the defence is obvious for all to see,” added Neville. “People question how good is Maguire but you only see it when he is not playing.”