Sir Alex Ferguson always wanted four strikers in his squad and in Radamel Falcao, Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie and Angel Di Maria, Louis van Gaal looks as if he has brought together The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, writes Stan Collymore in the Sunday People .
I asked Manchester United fans on social media what their preferred starting line-up would be following Falcao’s deadline-day arrival and I counted about 50 different permutations.
I am fascinated to see what option Van Gaal takes when the Old Trafford giants entertain QPR on Sunday, and I will be interested to witness the reaction of those who are left out.
Juan Mata is the most likely to feel the pinch after the arrival of Di Maria and he may well think he has been sold down the river by the club or, at the very least his former manager David Moyes, having only joined United from Chelsea in January.
And even though there were hugs and high fives between Van Gaal and Van Persie with Holland during the World Cup, I still think the manager is so ruthless that he could go with two up front and make Rooney and Falcao his first-choice duo.
There are concerns about Van Persie’s injury record and the fact he seems to self-diagnose, only playing when he feels one hundred per cent fit, and United need all hands to the pump if they are to get back into Europe.
Of course, so much will depend on whether Van Gaal sticks with a back three or whether he changes the shape from 3-5-2 to a 4-3-3 or, as I would, a 4-2-3-1 formation.
United’s defenders haven’t looked at ease in a three and, if you asked who were the two Premier League teams who are ahead of the pack, you'd say Chelsea and Manchester City – both of whom play four at the back.
United fans expect attacking football and a solid defence gives them the best chance of doing that.
I think Van Gaal will opt for two ball-playing, deep-lying midfielders in Daley Blind and Ander Herrera, and when Michael Carrick is fit he will have a big part to play in rotating with those two.
But it is up front where I expect the real fireworks and I would love to see all of his fantastic four starting as regularly as they can.
If I was King Louis , my starting line-up would be:
De Gea; Rafael, Jones, Rojo, Shaw; Herrera, Blind; Rooney, Di Maria, Falcao; Van Persie.
And I’d be saying to those four up top: “Right, these are your starting points, but you’ve all got bundles of international caps, you’re all intelligent players, if one drops, one pushes, if one comes inside, one goes outside. Be flexible. Be creative.”
And that will drive defences to despair.
United unveil Falcao and Blind:
There aren’t many better forwards at getting in behind defenders, chesting the ball down and getting in a volley or shot than Van Persie, and Falcao is almost identical in his movement.
I hope that Falcao has already been saying to his team-mates: “These are the runs I make. Put the ball there, I will score goals and we will win matches.”
Di Maria is capable of picking a pass, short or long, to unlock defences, and that will be vital.
There seems to be some sort of football communism at the moment that sniffs at the 30- or 40-yard pass which Glenn Hoddle and David Beckham were masters of, but Di Maria can play that ball as well.
And if he continues to do so, then United’s other Horsemen will wreak havoc and despair upon the poor defences who have to face them.
