Swansea City: Bob Bradley Manchester United tactics inexplicable

Swansea City lost 3-1 to Manchester United as Swans manager Bob Bradley got his tactics inexplicably wrong.

Swansea City were massacred by Manchester United on Sunday in the Premier League. The final score may have been 3-1, but the gap between the two teams on the day could have seen the score finish much higher.

Swansea haven’t won a game since the opening day of the season. The way Bob Bradley set his team up against United, a win won’t be arriving anytime soon either. Bradley set his team up for failure. Sent them out like lambs to the slaughter.

United won thanks to goals from Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovich (two). United put in a good performance -which is their first for a while. However, it was no coincidence that it was this game in particular where United actually started to look like they were turning the corner.

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Jose Mourinho’s men were desperate for a win, too. This Swansea team turned out to be just what the doctor ordered. The Red Devils might not be cured, but their definitely feeling better after a trip to the Liberty Stadium.

Bradley knew the situation his team was in going into the United game. He understood the mentality. The Swans boss even admitted after a defeat against Stoke City a week ago, that his team were lacking confidence and belief.

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So why did Bradley send out his team to play so openly in a 4-4-2 formation against United? The home team were on the back foot right from the kick off. United had 63 percent possession away from home and had complete domination in the center of the park.

United, the better team of the two, had Michael Carrick, Paul Pogba and Marouane Fellaini in central midfield. Swansea, the less talented team, had just Ki Sung-yeung and Leon Britton. As expected United totally dominated the game and had all the time in the world to pass the ball around and dictate the game.

Swansea’s best player, Gylfi Sigurdsson, was stuck out of position on the left wing. Two strikers who have just 2 goals between them all season were both playing up front. Why both? A defense that is among the worst in the league was left totally exposed and without protection.

What was Bradley thinking? Perhaps his idea was that United are not so hot right now, so we’ll open the game up and go right at them. But despite United being in bad form, just by the individuals they have, they are still a lot better than Swansea.

There was a way for Bradley to go about trying to win this game. It was there for the taking, given United’s form. But being so open was not it. Instead, pack the midfield. Stifle United’s service to the likes of Ibrahimovich up front. Keep the game tight.

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And then try and probe United’s leaky defense as the game goes on. Be smart. The Swansea players are lacking confidence right now, they need protection from their manager. They didn’t need to be put out on the field in a vulnerable setup and formation against a team much better than them.

It was a grave error of judgement on Bradley’s behalf. Something the American cannot afford too often if he is to guide the Swans to Premier League survival.

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