Manchester United traveled to North London to take on Tottenham in our second match of the season, with Erik ten Hag naming an unchanged starting eleven from the side that struggled to see out a 1-0 win at home against Wolves to open the season.
Perhaps not wanting to make any knee-jerk decisions regarding his line-up, Ten Hag seemed willing to give his players the chance to make amends for a subpar performance last week.
Spurs looked to overturn a streak against United that hadn’t seen them record a home win against the Red Devils since 2018. This task was easily accomplished on the night, as United’s lack of clinical finishing in front of goal and shambolic defending was just a continuation of the poor showing against Wolves.
To be fair to United, they looked better in the first half against Spurs than they did against Wolves, but where Spurs came out for the second half with the bit between their teeth, United might as well have not left the dressing room at all.
United were shameful, but take nothing away from Spurs and new manager Ange Postecoglou; they attacked and cut out the passing lanes and constantly put United’s defenders under pressure, which ultimately paid off and secured a vital three points for the hosts.
Let’s talk a little about Manchester United and take a look at three thoughts I had on the match:
United need a number nine
Whether new signing Rasmus Hojlund is the answer or not when he recovers from a back injury, United are in desperate need of an out-and-out striker.
United recorded 22 shots, but only managed to put six on target. We’ve seen how failure to put away clear chances has cost United points over the years, so opportunities like Bruno Fernandes’ free header or Antony’s attempt off the post shortly after Spurs’ first goal simply need to be put in the back of the net.
As usual, the Reds created more big chances than the opposition, but without a true number nine to get on the end of them, United’s goal difference doesn’t look likely to improve anytime soon. It was only after Anthony Martial entered the match that United began to look a bit more dangerous in the final third, as Martial’s ability to hold the ball and get into a striker’s positions was missing the entire match. It’s a shame, too, as when he’s fit, Martial is perhaps United’s most dangerous attacker. He just can’t stay fit and, therefore, can’t be relied upon.
Marcus Rashford isn’t a number nine. His goal output last season was tremendous for United and the type of goals he scored were more in line with a striker, but he just doesn’t possess the positioning or instinct to lead the line for United on a regular basis. When he isn’t offside, Rashford cuts a frustrated and isolated figure who takes too many touches to get a shot away and often times loses the ball as a result.
With Hojlund injured, one can understand why Ten Hag sticks with Rashford up top, but an argument can be made that playing Jadon Sancho as a false nine with Rashford in his favoured left wing position might have been the better starting eleven.
Alejandro Garnacho is lively and precocious, but the youngster is still a few seasons away from being the finished product; his final ball and decision-making in the final third needs work, too. Garnacho’s inexperience showed a bit against Wolves and again against Spurs; perhaps a few matches as an impact sub would be ideal for the Argentine winger as ten Hag looks to steady the ship after a disappointing first two matches.
There’s still time in the transfer window for United to recognise the need for another striker, but I wouldn’t hold my breath. One goal in the first two matches isn’t a good start. Benni McCarthy and Ten Hag need to get their players scoring, though, otherwise this will be a long season.
Defence looks shaky
Luke Shaw, Casemiro, and Lisandro Martinez aren’t off to a great start this season. Shaw has been caught out of position on several occasions, Casemiro still doesn’t look fit, and Martinez looks a complete shadow of himself. The second half was even worse, as United constantly found themselves at sixes and sevens while Spurs passed the ball around United’s eighteen and the Red Devils were completely switched off for Spurs’ second goal, with no one picking up Ben Davies in the box. No United fan should panic yet, but there are definitely reasons to worry.
Trying to play out from the back in a congested defensive third continues to cause problems for United. Rather than try to walk the ball out of defence, United need to just clear the danger, regroup, and try to win the ball higher up the pitch. The problem, though, is that–once again–United look vulnerable against the counter attack. Against Spurs, particularly, our players were slow to track back or close down the space. We saw this with Spurs’ opening goal, where Dejan Kulusevski was given acres of space to carry the ball all the way to the byline and put it into the mixer before any United player attempted to close him down.
It’s a bit worrying that, for the second match in a row, United’s full-backs have been overwhelmed by overlapping opposition and left confused as to which players to pick up and which to pass off to a teammate. One hopes that Ten Hag isn’t so focused a high press that he neglects the importance of defending in your own half of the pitch.
Everyone who criticised Harry Maguire for being too slow needs to watch Raphael Varane more closely when United face a counter attack. The Frenchman is a class defender with a trophy room most players will only ever dream of, but he is slow and runs as if he’s constantly worried about injuring himself again. United may just need to bite the bullet and pay off Maguire’s contract in order to bring in a more long-term rotation option for Varane.
Ten Hag’s big money signings are letting him down
Ten Hag making Mason Mount his priority signing this summer raised more than a few eyebrows. What began as whispers of doubt have steadily grown louder as Mount’s questionable preseason form hasn’t improved. United’s newest number seven gets around the pitch a lot, but he simply isn’t doing enough to reward Ten Hag’s faith or justify the manager’s decision to sign him. Is a Mount/Bruno partnership not the answer? Does Mount just need to step it up? Or does he just need more time to gel with his teammates? Whatever the reason for Mount’s slow start to life at Old Trafford, managers live or die by decisions like this and with United’s shambolic transfer history and on-pitch priorities, the choice to sign Mount and hand him the number seven shirt could end up costing Ten Hag if things don’t improve.
Antony, too, is failing the manager who put so much faith in him. I won’t criticise Ten Hag or Antony for the fee United paid for the Brazilian, as United could have signed him for much less had they not waited until August last year, but Antony needs to do better. Against Wolves, Antony showed more willingness to take on his defender and get to the byline, but he quickly reverted to type in the second half last week and continued that regression against Spurs. His decision-making and final pass need to improve and he no longer has the excuse of being new to the Premier League to fall back on.
Casemiro and Eriksen are taking too long to get match fit. This is the risk you take when you sign older players, though. Casemiro was immense for United last season and was arguably one of United’s best signings of the last decade. Eriksen, too, was a classy playmaker in the first half of last year, but hasn’t looked the same since his long-term injury. Casemiro is United’s only defensive midfielder, too, and with the Brazilian missing so many matches through suspension last season and Mount and Bruno’s advanced positions leaving Casemiro on his own, failing to bring in a more versatile partner or rotation option for him this summer could be a costly oversight. Eriksen may have been a free signing, but his inability to defend has hurt United a few times and he did fail to stay with Ben Davies for Spurs’ second goal. Sofyan Amrabat would be a welcome addition to United’s midfield, but with United needing to sell to buy, it’s not a certainty that the Moroccan will arrive at Old Trafford, more’s the pity.
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You hit the point on Ganarcho. Worst when Luke works his way up front in a good position, the next pass in the attack is a giveaway, ususally a terrible giveaway, but Ganarcho has to cover for him and stick with the man. Check out the first goal. This has been a continuous problem with the youth players, and face it, we don’t seem to be dangerous in attack unless Luke is involved.
Why not use McT at #9, he’s tall, capable and a bull.
Why did ManU offer for Sabs?
Mount just adds another high price player that you can’t dump.
Ultimate, Bruno was the momentum killer. How can he continue to miss U-14 shots or headers!!
ETH is looking like he will be the guy to really do united over. 400m and literally no style of play. With FFP it will leave united in ruins. The only reason he got the job was to inplement his style. Turns out he hasn’t the stones to drop get rid of players who don’t fit that system. Rashford and Bruno as captain. Perfect examples. And mount? What a terrible signing.
United need a sporting director who decided the play and appoints managers accordingly. ETH is a failure and he needs to start implementing that style or get sacked.