Beaten, exposed and embarrassed - Manchester United get it all wrong
Son chips over De Gea to put Spurs ahead at Old Trafford
Manchester United’s 6-1 defeat at home to Tottenham was a disaster class in defending, game management and basic competency. In some ways, the club and players are actually quite lucky that they head straight off to International duty after this thrashing. Let’s delve a little deeper and take a look at what happened.
The game started well for Man Utd, with their quick thinking from an early throw-in resulting in Fernandes slipping a great ball into Martial in the box. Davidson Sanchez panicked and brought down the Frenchman. Bruno Fernandes stepped up and psyched out Lloris to give his team the lead.
However, It all started to go downhill from there. Tottenham’s first goal was one of the most ridiculous goals ever seen at Old Trafford. That it was all caused by Manchester United’s £80m captain is an extremely worrying sign for Man Utd fans. Maguire’s attempts at first clearing the ball and then getting it back to De Gea were atrocious. Not content to stop there, he also pulled down Luke Shaw (more on him later) as he tried to clear up the mess. A truly shocking passage of play.
His clumsiness and lack of nous in needlessly fouling Kane and then not stopping Tottenham taking the freekick quickly for their second goal was another moment to forget. Harry Maguire has been in woeful form since his Greek nightmare in Mykonos in the summer break. Only he will know if that is the cause for his recent form, but suffice to say until he can get a grip on his erratic performances, this defence will have no hope.
The reason it will have no hope is because Harry Maguire, at this moment in time, is still Man Utd’s best senior defender. Eric Bailly, recalled to the side after Lindelöf’s recent displays which were covered here and here, had an absolute shocker too. He fell asleep for the second goal, allowing Son to show his sensational pace and finishing by not sensing the danger. However, much worse was to come shortly after Martial’s red card.
Sometimes, once a team goes down to 10 men, they sit deeper and can become harder to score against. Not the case here! Bailly’s misplaced pass straight into Tottenham’s high press was a terrible attempt to play out from the back and sealed the fate of the match with almost an hour left to play. As Patrice Evra said, he cannot complain if he finds himself back on the bench after that wretched performance.
Tottenham’s fourth goal, from a defensive perspective, was a complete catastrophe. Not only did Maguire have to go to the left back position to cover Luke Shaw, the latter then inexplicably decided to leave the near post where he was covering Maguire, to close down Kane on the edge of the box, much further away from goal than both Lamela and Son. This gave Son so much time and space to score that he decided it was worth a cheeky dance to celebrate. Another deplorable decision from Luke Shaw. His stock has fallen incredibly low, and maybe Mourinho was fair in his stinging criticism of the once promising left back. He looks certain to lose his place in the team in the coming weeks with the arrival of Alex Telles, and perhaps that would be for the best for all parties concerned.
Tottenham’s fifth goal showed why putting Pogba ahead of Luke Shaw in a halftime rejig was a disaster waiting to happen, as both of them were caught ball watching and ignoring the run of Serge Aurier into the box, who slotted the ball home with consummate ease. Shaw seems to find numerous ways to leave an astonishing amount of space in the position he himself is meant to occupy, while Pogba, for all of the great things people want to say about him, has never, ever been known for his ability to track players running past him. Is that his fault for a lack of tactical discipline and application, or Solskjaer’s fault for playing him in positions where he needs to do so? Maybe the blame lies with both parties.
Speaking of Pogba, he was dreadful from start to finish, compounding his awful start to the season. Yes, he had coronavirus and therefore missed some match time for France which undoubtedly hasn’t helped, but if fitness is the issue, why is he starting? His tackle on Ben Davies to concede the penalty was senseless and rash.
Truth be told, he just doesn’t suit this system in this position. He has shown he is simply not up to the job of playing in a double pivot in a 4-2-3-1 for Manchester United. How many times will we be told he simply needs better players alongside him to play better? He was a £90m signing, heralding the start of a new beginning in the post-Ferguson era, but instead he has begun to personify the problems Man Utd have had over the past seven years: undeniably talented but overpriced, with clear question marks over application, commitment and consistency.
That Manchester United look like a much more balanced team with Fred in his place in midfield says it all. With the Brazilian and Donny van de Beek looking like much more energetic and tactically flexible players, questions over his place in this team should now be asked. Yes, he is clearly talented, but he doesn’t do the job the team requires of him. Should the formation be changed instead? Pogba seems to play at his best for Man Utd as either a no. 10 or an 8, and a switch to 4-3-3 could both help him and make the team stronger and more balanced in midfield. This would mean dropping Fernandes deeper, which the Portuguese could do with a fair amount of ease. The problem with building the team around Pogba, however, is that his performances don’t warrant it. His inconsistency is unbefitting of a ‘world class’ player, and he needs to look within himself to improve his game, rather than letting those around him pick up his slack.
Where do Manchester United go from here? Solskjaer’s tactics have come under scrutiny after his side were outplayed in all three of their opening games. The lack of recruitment has been embarrassing if not surprising, but that still doesn’t excuse the performances. The draws at home against Southampton and West Ham last season should have opened eyes to deficiencies. The victory vs Brighton was incredibly lucky, and against Crystal Palace and now Tottenham they have been exposed.
A switch to 4-3-3 or a midfield diamond would make the midfield more solid and give them more numbers in an area where they are constantly outnumbered, while a move to three at the back may give the defenders some comfort at a time where confidence must be shattered. Either a change in formation or a change in personnel in the starting XI to provide more defensive security in midfield should be priorities.
It was said here that Manchester United could not afford a slow start, and here we are two weeks later. With Everton, Arsenal and Tottenham all looking much improved, and Chelsea, Man City and Liverpool all having strengthened, Manchester United fans have gone from cautious optimism to the depths of despair within 3 months. For their sake, let’s hope Edison Cavani can marshall a back four.