Manchester United faced Wolves on Boxing Day and the travelling Old Trafford faithful will be feeling blue this Christmas.
For Ruben Amorim, a miserable December continued on Thursday as he oversaw Manchester United’s first Boxing Day loss since 2015 and a 2-0 defeat to Stoke City.
On a miserable night at the Molineux, a corner once again unstuck United. Andre Onana was caught out by Matheus Cunha, who scored directly from a corner.
United didn’t really have a response to this, despite heavy pressure the Red Devils didn’t create anything by way of a big chance.
In the dying moments, Hee-Chan Hwang made it 2-0, with Cunha providing the assist.
Here are five things we learned from the game.
Ruben Amorim needs to be backed
As bad as things are right now for United, the fans must avoid pinning the blame on the manager.
Amorim warned that there would be a struggle, and this season is already a write-off, with individual errors costing United week in and week out.
United have the right man in charge, and eventually, things will click. But for now, the manager needs support and the club must help him in January with a left wing-back.
Andre Onana on thin ice
Recent weeks have seen blunder after blunder from both United’s goalkeepers, with Onana the culprit this week.
Once again Onana can take a large portion of the blame for the defeat, as he helplessly watched Cunha’s corner sail in.
It is becoming a pattern which will worry Amorim, and with Ineos set to be brutal next summer in recruitment, Onana could find himself on thin ice right now.
New set-piece coach must be acquired
While United continue to underperform, it is corners which are becoming the biggest problem for the Red Devils.
Another game and another goal conceded from a corner and this time it was directly from Matheus Cunha’s delivery.
Onana was stuck in no man’s land as United conceded the second direct corner in three games.
Ineos need to address this in January and give Amorim a specialist who can take charge of ser pieces going forward.
Manuel Ugarte sensational once again in midfield
It is becoming a weekly occurrence now that Manuel Ugarte is among the standout players for Amorim’s side.
In a team of underperformers, it was Ugarte who was one of the only players to perform.
Ugarte won seven of his seven duels while winning three of five tackles.
- 31/35 passes
- 52 touches
- 2/2 long passes
- 3/5 tackles won
- 8 defensive actions
- 4 recoveries
- 7/7 duels won
Amorim’s struggles would be multiplied without Ugarte.
Matheus Cunha should be top of the list to replace Marcus Rashford
Throughout the game, United’s defence was torn to shreds by Wolves’ Matheus Cunha.
United have been linked with Cunha recently, and he passed his audition with flying colours on Thursday evening at the Molineux.
Cunha was a constant threat every time he got the ball, and his dribbling led to both Leny Yoro and Bruno Fernandes getting booked.
This is without even touching on the goal he scored directly from a corner. The Brazilian must be high on the list to possibly replace Marcus Rashford.
from United In Focus https://ift.tt/8LxgMp5