The Liverpool game might be Manchester United coach Erik Ten Hag’s last chance | Football News
Manchester United are a club in free fall at the moment having lost 12 out of 24 matches in all competitions and crashing out of the Champions League after finishing bottom of their group which also ensured they were not even good enough to compete in the Europa League.The pressure on manager Erik Ten Hag has been mounting for a while now and this weekend’s game against rivals Liverpool might be the final nail in the coffin. In 2018, this was the same fixture that had cost Jose Mourinho his job even though he had won the Europa and the Carabao Cup with the team in the previous season while also finishing second in the league. In comparison, ten Hag has won just a Carabao Cup.
A leaky defence
After the recent 0-1 defeat to a Bayern Munich side which looked to be playing at half speed, which ultimately resulted in United being eliminated from Europe, a worrying stat has come to the fore. United have let in 15 goals in the Champions League group stage which is the most conceded a Premier League side in hory in the first round of Europe’s premier competition.
🚨 Manchester United are out of the European competitions.
15 goals conceded and four defeats in UCL Group A. pic.twitter.com/rDFrBNJlv4
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 12, 2023
Even though United have had problems in the defence since the iconic pair of Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic departed the club, nothing compares to the situation under ten Hag. At times, the defence have looked utterly clueless with centre-back pairings changing every other match, be it for injuries or other reasons.
In all competitions, United have let in a total of 39 goals with a 4-3 loss to Bayern, 2-3 loss and a 3-3 draw with Galatasaray, a 4-3 loss to Copenhagen in the UCL while losing 0-3 to Bournemouth, 0-3 to Newcastle, 0-3 to Manchester City, 1-3 to Brighton and 3-1 to Arsenal in the Premier League. That’s at least 9 matches where the defence have conceded 3 or more goals. In a club of United’s stature, that’s not what you want from a defence that has cost about $411 million.
A shaky goalkeeper
Another huge problem this season has been the inclusion of former Inter Milan goalie Andre Onana in between the sticks. Even though the Cameroon international can be decent with the ball at his feet, the other attributes that you would want from a goalkeeper have been sorely lacking.
There’s a clear gap in communication between the goalie and his defenders that has been clear as day to see. Granted that the constant changes in the defence (ten Hag has picked 8 different CB combinations thus far) have made it pretty difficult for the goalie and his defenders to get on the same wavelength, it’s still no excuse for the goals that United have conceded.
Most of the goals Onana conceded looked pretty easy to save as well which has raised questions over his techniques. In the second leg match against Galatasaray for instance, the €52.5 million signing let in at least 2 goals in a 3-3 thriller that would have been saved any shot stopper in the world. According to Opta, the United goalie has also made more errors leading to goals than any other goalkeeper in the Champions League since 2018/19.
The striker conundrum
Even though United have at last gotten their hands on a proper number 9 this season with the signing of Rasmus Højlund from Atalanta, he is yet to net a goal in the Premier League. Even though the Dane has 5 Champions League goals this season, his league form has been a concern for the fans as well as the manager.
Højlund is still a developing prospect but he hasn’t exactly been helped his teammates. Far more often than not, players like Marcus Rashford and Diogo Dalot have opted to shoot from impossible angles instead of passing it to the striker who was in an advantageous position.
Manchester United have become the first English side in hory to concede 15 goals in the Champions League group stage.
Here’s all 15 goals they let in… ⬇️pic.twitter.com/1jPap89W6r
— (@Philipmelo126) December 13, 2023
Ten Hag has also made curious calls of benching him in matches and starting Antony Martial instead for reasons that are still unknown. Martial has been with this side since 2015 and has not done anything of note for the entirety of his time at Old Trafford. So why was the sluggish striker started ahead of Højlund in a clash against a high-pressing Newcastle? The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind.
And the time Hojlund was introduced, it was too little too late as United fell 1-0 to the Magpies in a match where the scoreline does no justice to Newcastle’s dominance who had 22 attempts at United’s goal, compared to their opponent’s meek 4 attempts.
In the next match, United defeated Chelsea 2-1 but promptly lost to Bournemouth 0-3 after 3 days. This lack of consency has been a huge problem for the Red Devils under ten Hag and with a trip to Anfield looming over the horizon, the memories of their 7-0 thrashing the last time they went there, are still fresh in the players’ minds.
