Coach Erik ten Hag made an unreasonable substitution decision in Manchester United’s 0-3 loss to Manchester City.
The Manchester derby ended with a result showing Man City’s dominance.
The home team at Etihad Stadium completely controlled the match, making it almost impossible for the Red Devils to advance the ball.
Right at Old Trafford, Erling Haaland scored a double and Phil Foden’s goal really sunk Man Utd.
In this match, Sofyan Amrabat continues to be deployed in the anchor midfielder role in the absence of Casemiro. However, the Moroccan midfielder’s performance was not too outstanding.
He hardly touched the ball, only had a meager 20 touches in 45 minutes, a very poor number for a player playing in the midfield position. Amrabat only made 10 passes and struggled to keep up with the intensity of Man City’s players.
The 27-year-old player only wins 50% of his duels. He fouled Man City players twice while only making one tackle and blocking a shot once.
When needing to advance the ball, Amrabat made 0 shots, 0 long passes and 0 crosses. Obviously Amrabat’s performance has been very bad since joining Man Utd.
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Since arriving at Old Trafford, he has been disappointing and has struggled to find his best form. The Premier League environment is extremely harsh for Man Utd’s new contract.
Previously, in the match against Crystal Palace earlier this month, Amrabat lost control of the ball about 20 times.
However, coach Erik ten Hag’s decision in the second half was even worse.
Right at the beginning of the second half, Ten Hag took Amrabat out and trusted Mason Mount. Although Amrabat did not play very well, at least he created a defensive shield from afar for Man Utd.
Meanwhile, Ten Hag’s intention to withdraw a defensive-minded player to replace him with a better attacker completely went bankrupt. Because, Mount had an underwhelming performance.
In nearly 50 minutes, Mount had 0 assists, 0 passes to create opportunities, 0 shots and only completed 4 successful passes. Obviously, bringing Mount onto the field was a big mistake for Ten Hag.
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Obviously, replacing Amrabat on the field is one of Ten Hag’s most confusing decisions.
The midfield line is weak, replacing a real shield makes the team more fragile. What is more worth discussing is placing McTominay in position number 6, creating a fatal weakness in the midfield. Mount’s role after entering the field was also completely lackluster, it was difficult to find a reason why Ten Hag replaced number 7 on the field.
Regarding the yellow card, it may have been a big enough factor for Mr. Muoi to decide to withdraw him from a match where he seemed to have given up, but considering the importance of the confrontation and the level of competition. Tough in the tournament and tactically, it’s hard to explain Ten Hag’s decisions in the match.
