Three things we learnt from Manchester United’s 1-1 draw with Stoke

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Jesse Lingard Gives United Better Balance

Lingard was outstanding in the first half today, and was unfortunate not to open the scoring after a sharp run to the near post. United play with a front three, and Lingard balances their forward line nicely. Ideally, you want one wideman to act as a second striker; a player that can support the centre forward. That role was played by Marcus Rashford.

You want the other wide player to act as a fourth midfielder; to drift into central areas and link play. Lingard might not be United’s most gifted player, but he is an intelligent mover and the quality of his runs gave Stoke all manner of problems in the first half.

When United lost away at Watford last month, they started the game with a forward triumvirate of Martial, Ibrahimovic and Rashford, and with Wayne Rooney in midfield United basically had four strikers on the pitch. Having a more creative presence helps the flow of their attacking play, and Henrikh Mkhitaryan will have an eye on this spot.