Jose Mourinho getting sacked is probably good news for Manchester United fans. But what does it mean for fantasy soccer players?
Here's a look at the Manchester United squad in the wake of Mourinho's departure:
The happiest person of all about the news is probably Pogba, who had been benched by Mourinho in recent weeks. Pogba hasn't started in the team's past three league games and hasn't even gotten off the bench in the past two.
Despite that, Pogba has been Manchester United's best fantasy performer so far this season, averaging 12.6 points per game -- more than Liverpool's Sadio Mane and Tottenham's Christian Eriksen, among others. That's why Pogba remains a Tier 1 midfielder, the only Manchester United player who has retained his Tier 1 status.
Whoever takes charge of the team going forward, I'd expect Pogba to return to the starting lineup. However, I've never been a big fan of Pogba as a Tier 1 midfielder, and I don't think my feelings will change any time soon.
He's scored only three goals this season, and not one of them has come from open play. Two were penalty kicks, in the first two games of the season, and the third was a rebound from a penalty kick that was saved. Until I see Pogba start scoring from places other than the penalty spot, I wouldn't pick him ahead of Eden Hazard or the Manchester City players available in Tier 1.
Romelu Lukaku and Marcus Rashford
To see Lukaku available at Tier 2 forward is pretty stunning, given that he scored 16 goals for Manchester United last season and 25 for Everton the season before that. But that's how bad Lukaku has been this season -- he's scored six goals but only two since mid-September.
Lukaku also fell out of favor with Mourinho for a spell -- between Oct. 28 and Dec. 5 he started only two of the five league games he played in. And he was practically invisible in the 3-1 loss to Liverpool on Sunday. But Lukaku is still one of the best options in Tier 2 right now.
He did score a goal against Southampton on Dec. 1 and another against Fulham on Dec. 8. Teams often experience a bounce right after a managerial change, and Manchester United face another weak opponent this coming weekend, playing at Cardiff City. If Lukaku starts, there's a decent chance he'll be on my team.
Rashford has started only nine league games -- three fewer than Lukaku -- but is averaging 8.5 points per game, only slightly lower than Lukaku's average of 8.9. He has three goals and five assists, including a goal and four assists since the beginning of December.
Whether the new manager will start Lukaku and Rashford together is a big question mark, since both are really center forwards. Mourinho did so only five times this season. If they both start, I'd probably go with Lukaku over Rashford because of his better goal-scoring record in recent seasons. But if Lukaku's on the bench, I'd strongly consider Rashford in Tier 2 as well.
Martial is Manchester United's leading goal scorer on the season with seven, even though he's started just nine games. He is another attractive player now that he's dropped down to being a Tier 2 midfielder.
He's started only one game in December but scored a goal in that game against Arsenal. Martial also had a very hot streak from Oct. 6 through Nov. 11, during which he scored at least one goal in five consecutive games, including a brace at Chelsea.
Martial doesn't shoot a lot -- he's taken only 18 shots in 13 appearances. He's also not much of a creator, with no assists and only 16 chances created. Other players in Tier 2, like Ryan Fraser (four goals, seven assists, 39 chances created), James Maddison (five goals, two assists, 37 chances created) and Gylfi Sigurdsson (six goals, two assists, 36 chances created) are much more well-rounded.
But in the right matchup -- like against Cardiff City, who have conceded 33 goals in 17 games -- Martial could deliver a huge points haul and might be worth the risk.
Young has started 12 games this season, including the past 10 in a row, and has a goal and two assists. He scored that goal, and picked up one of those assists, in the 4-1 win over Fulham on Dec. 8.
As one of the team's veterans, Young will probably retain his place in the lineup under the new manager, at least for now. And against a weak opponent, I'd consider him at Tier 2 defender, hoping for some attacking returns.
But be warned: Young has finished in double figures in points only three times this season. Wolves' Matt Doherty, the top player in Tier 2 in terms of points per game, has finished in double figures nine times.
Last season De Gea was the top-ranked player at his position, finishing with a league-best 18 clean sheets and averaging more than 14 points per game.
This season De Gea has just two clean sheets in 17 games, and Manchester United have already conceded 29 goals, one more than they did all of last season. De Gea is averaging only 5.1 points per game.
It's certainly not all his fault -- the defenders in front of him deserve plenty of blame -- but it'll be a long time before I trust De Gea again, whether Mourinho's in the dugout or not.