WHAT IS WRONG WITH MANCHESTER UNITED?

Soccer

Written by Aaron Cantin

It was less than a year ago that Manchester United won at West Ham to stretch their record unbeaten league run away from home to 29 games. What a happy, uncomplicated time that must seem for them now, in the wake of a seventh successive away defeat with a cumulative score of 2-21. This is United’s worst away run since 1936. Was the performance in west London worse than the 5-0 defeat at Crystal Palace in 1972? It’s probably too early to be sure, but Saturday was haplessness at a volume that will resonate through the generations.

Source (Background Photo): Getty Images

At Brentford on Saturday, United was simply lost, confused and the second-best team on the pitch. There’s not a single element of this side that works. Confidence is shot. Basics have gone. None of the parts fit together. There are complaints about a lack of signing from the Glazers, but this is a squad that has been expensively assembled; the starting XI cost eight times that of Brentford. The problem is that it has been put together extraordinarily badly, with no long-term vision, and zero understanding of football.

Ten Hag, appointed in the summer from Ajax, is the first United manager to lose his first two competitive games since John Chapman in 1921. It's also four league defeats in a row -- stretching back to last season -- for the first time since 1979. Ten Hag -- who handed Cristiano Ronaldo his first start of the season -- responded to the dismal first-half performance by replacing Luke Shaw, Lisandro Martinez and Fred at half-time, but there were very few United players who deserved to stay on after the first 45 minutes.

David De Gea has been Man United's No.1 goalkeeper for more than a decade but there is a strong argument that he should be dropped moving forward. He was caught on his line when Aston Villa scored a last-minute equalizer in a friendly in Perth and his season has only gone downhill from there. Ten Hag wants his team to play out from the goalkeeper and De Gea's passing was shaky in the defeat to Brighton. Against Brentford, though, it was even more damaging. He had already let Josh Dasilva's tame shot squirm under his body to gift Brentford the opening goal when he tried to pass out to Christian Eriksen. The pass wasn't there, Eriksen was robbed by Mathias Jensen, who put Brentford 2-0 up inside the first 20 minutes. United is looking to add another goalkeeper before the transfer deadline and those efforts will intensify after De Gea's latest disaster.

Like it or not but the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo has drastically altered the play of other players on the team for better and for worse. This is not a shot at Ronaldo. In fact, without Cristiano, Manchester United would have been in a much worse position last year. Ronaldo alters a team so much that it undoubtedly has some unwanted effects on other attackers or playmakers on the squad. The one that has certainly been impacted the most is Bruno Fernandes. The Portuguese midfielder, who had been exceptional since his arrival in January 2020, has lost some of his magic since the arrival of the national star. He lost his clairvoyance, his spontaneity, his impact on the game… And he also lost a little in statistics (and perhaps in confidence). The one who was the anchor of his team, and who was taking all the set pieces before the arrival of CR7 had to change his habits to make room for him. During the 20/21 season, the Top 3 scorers had 28 goals (Fernandes), then 21 (Rashford) and 17 (Cavani). And under Ronaldo (20/21), the Top 3 scored 24 (Ronaldo), 10 (Fernandes) and 6 (Greenwood). The other attacking players did not become bad overnight (like Sancho who was brilliant in Dortmund), but here they can’t do it!

Thirdly, Harry Maguire. It is often said in football that a team resembles its captain. This is the case with Manchester United. Harry Maguire has worn the armband for far too long. Arriving as the most expensive defender in history (€90m), ahead of the great Virgil van Dijk, the Englishman never assumed this status. Multiplying errors, Maguire has become a symbol of feverishness. A captain must, on the contrary, be the one who wears his clothes and on whom his teammates can rely. He is not supposed to be the one who is going to put their heads under water. He must not be the first on the ejection seat. Because his place in the 11 can be strongly questioned. To get out of this negative spiral, change is needed: change the framework, change mentalities… And change Maguire!

Saying all this, do I think Manchester United will stay at the bottom of the table? No, I do not. Do I think they will be in a relegation battle at the end of the season? No, I don’t. But do I see them competing for the title or even a Champions League spot which is the bare necessity at one of the biggest clubs in the world? Well, I don’t see that either. Just two games into the season and I have seen enough to declare this another wasted season for Manchester United. By the way next up for United? Liverpool. Good luck.