Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana emerged as his team’s biggest liability during a frustrating 3-3 draw against Galatasaray in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night.

Courtesy of goals from Alejandro Garnacho and Bruno Fernandes, Man United got the match off to a lightning start, earning a two-goal cushion that should have been defended.

Unfortunately, it was Onana who allowed the hosts back into the game.

After Galatasaray were awarded a free kick, the goalkeeper positioned himself poorly to face the set-piece, leaving a gaping hole at the far post as his defensive wall covered the near post.

For Hakim Ziyech, it was an easy decision to direct his shot toward the far post, with Onana too far out of position to stop the ball from crashing into the back of the net.

While Scott McTominay restored United’s two-goal lead after half-time, Onana would yet again allow the hosts to reduce the deficit to one goal in an incident that was almost identical to the first goal.

Yet again, Ziyech stepped up to take a free kick, this time from further away and a tame effort towards Onana, who allowed the ball to bounce off his leg and into the goal.

Finally, in the 71st minute, the United keeper was caught napping on his near post, with Kerem Aktürkoglu, thumping the ball past him to hand the Turkish giants the equaliser.

In addition to significantly reducing United’s chances of progressing to the Champions League Round of 16, this 3-3 draw has also resulted in a rather embarrassing statistic for Erik ten Hag’s team.

Conceding a colossal 33 goals in 20 matches, this is United’s worst defensive record at this stage of the campaign since the 1962-63 season.

Even Ten Hag himself spoke out after the match about his team’s poor defensive performances, observing, “We’re winning and then we’re losing. We should have took three points clear.”

The United manager also indicated that backup goalkeeper Altay Bayindir will receive playing opportunities going forward, thereby hinting that Onana cannot take his place in the starting 11 for granted.

While Onana has not been without his shining moments this season, his alarming defensive errors have continued to mount up throughout the campaign.

Referred to as a liability by The Telegraph‘s Jason Burt, Onana continues to make basic goalkeeping errors, with the “sweeper-keeper” remaining bizarrely rooted to the spot when facing some fairly straightforward shots against Galatasaray.

Clearly, United will need to figure out the best way to handle this goalkeeping dilemma and fast.

The post Andre Onana emerges as Manchester United’s greatest liability in frustrating draw to Galatasaray – analysis appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.

Opta Analyst has named Bruno Fernandes as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) for Manchester United, providing statistics that show just how vital the club captain is when it comes to creating goalscoring opportunities for his team.

In a season that has so far been riddled with injuries, Fernandes has been one of United’s few constants, appearing in every minute of the team’s Premier League campaign to date.

Together with Scott McTominay, Fernandes is Man United’s top goalscorer in the Premier League with three, while he also leads the club with two assists.

When taking into account his performances in the UEFA Champions League and the Carabao Cup, Fernandes’ statistics make for more impressive reading, with four goals and three assists in all competitions.

Fernandes’ clinical shooting made all the difference for United when he scored a stoppage-time winner against Fulham, while he was also scored the matchwinner in United’s 1-0 victory over Burnley and the 3-2 comeback victory against Nottingham Forest.

But while the attacking midfielder has proven to be a more effective goalscorer than United’s forwards, who have just one goal between them in the Premier League, he has been essential with his assists as well.

Opta Analyst found in their report that the chances Fernandes has created in the league carry 4.01 expected goals; the second-highest tally for any Premier League player behind Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah.

What’s more, the report showed that the United captain’s expected assists account for 23.8% of United’s total – a higher ratio than any other Premier League player this season.

The crucial role played by Fernandes has not gone unnoticed, with Saudi Arabia reportedly looking to lure him away from Old Trafford.

Still, the Portuguese midfielder assured that he remains satisfied at United, thereby subduing fans’ fears.

Bruno Fernandes on Saudi bids: “I’m happy where I am, I’m focused on Man United”.

“I don't look at rumors and also I don't pay attention to them. Today, it's very easy to spread rumors in the press. I prefer to concentrate on my goals”. pic.twitter.com/XC8aws4JOD

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) November 19, 2023

While Fernandes continues to be an essential asset for United, the club’s overreliance on him could be concerning, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe reportedly looking to build the squad around its captain.

Despite Fernandes’ new MVP status due to his consistently strong performances, United would do well to focus on improving the form of his teammates as well so as to avoid becoming a one-man team.

The post Opta Analyst names Bruno Fernandes as Manchester United’s MVP appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.

It was the latest in a series of strange decisions involving the World Cup winner that have left United fans asking what is going on, if anything, between him and manager Erik ten Hag.

In this article we review how Varane’s season has unfolded so far as we search for clues as to the reason for his persistent absences from the starting XI.

Start of season

The season began normally enough, with Varane at the heart of United’s defence alongside Lisandro Martinez in the first two matches.

The first sign of trouble game in match three against Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford. United had been rocked when unfancied Forest put two past them in the first ten minutes of the match. United pulled one back before Varane was substituted at half-time by Ten Hag.

Ten Hag reported Varane as having “complaints” and that “we didn’t want to risk him”, meaning an injury, but interestingly, transfermarkt.com recorded his replacement by Victor Lindelof as “tactical”.

Sky’s Kaveh Solhekol then reported that Varane could be missing for six weeks. In fact, he was then missing from the team for the next 27 days with what transfermarkt records as an “unknown injury”.

During this August period, rumours were flying that Saudi Pro-League club Al-Ittihad were trying to sign the 30 year old, but it was reported that he had turned them down flat.

Autumn interruptions

In his first game after returning from the mysterious injury, Varane came off the bench for 11 minutes as United beat Burnley 1-0. He then captained the side in their impressive EFL Cup win over Crystal Palace and was taken off after an hour, presumably to rest him.

He then played 87 minutes of the next game, a 0-1 home defeat to the same side, Palace. His performance had appeared solid.

Varane then formed part of the disastrous defence that allowed Turkish side Galatasaray to record a memorable 3-2 win at Old Trafford.

Then came another absence, in United’s loss to Brentford. Ten Hag explained that “He couldn’t make the game, he had a minor issue.

“If it was two or three days longer [between matches], he could have made it but now it was too short.”

Once again, transfermarkt.com did not record an injury, simply registering Varane as “not in the squad”.

With more time to recover due to an international break, everyone then expected the 5-times Champions League winner to return against Sheffield United on the 21st October. But again, to everyone’s surprise, he was left on the bench as Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans occupied the centre back positions.

Again, fans put this down to Ten Hag keeping him in cotton wool for the Champions League tie against Copenhagen 3 days later, when he played for 90 minutes and acquitted himself well.

Breaking point?

Next up was the Manchester derby. As in the Sheffield United game, Varane was named on the bench. But this time there could be no explanation of cotton wool.

Ten Hag said the reason was “tactics.” When pressed to offer an explanation, he said “When you face City, they will go up to press and then to play with Rapha [Varane, on the right] and Maguire over the left, that can give problems and then you end up only kicking long balls.”

“He is, for me, better on the right, Harry, especially against teams pressing high and, second, is you have to step in over that side and that was our tactic – to step in over [Julian] Alvarez and get Sofyan [Amrabat] higher to get [the] press on their build-up and that’s why.”

It seemed like an odd explanation: you drop your best centre back because you think an inferior centre back is poor on the left.

According to The Athletic, dressing room sources said there were “raised eyebrows” at the decision.

He was then omitted from the Carabao Cup squad against Newcastle. United lost both of those games 3-0.

Latest mystery

By this point the Saudi rumours were back, with Teamtalk.com claiming the player now wants a January move to the Pro League to reunite with Cristiano Ronaldo at Al Nassr.

“It is also said that the promises made to Varane when he signed have not been fulfilled, with Man Utd falling further behind the likes of Manchester City and Arsenal,” reporter Fraser Fletcher claims.

Ten Hag seemed to stamp out the rumours at Friday’s press conference ahead of yesterday’s match with Fulham, saying “Varane is ready to play. He will travel with the squad.”

Yet once again, the Frenchman was consigned to the bench and was brought on for just one minute of the game.

What happens next?

No United fan – nor possibly even Ten Hag, for that matter – could have imagined that the manager would be regularly benching a fit Raphael Varane in favour of a Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans partnership this season. But that is precisely what seems to have happened.

There is enough evidence to suggest that there could be an attitude problem. The “injuries” and absences seem to follow poor performances by United, which could have involved dressings down from Ten Hag. But if a poor attitude or dissent is the case, why would Varane have been made captain against Palace?

On the other hand, if there is an ongoing injury issue, why does Ten Hag not explain that to the press to end the speculation that he and Varane are at odds?

The most likely explanation is that the Frenchman does have a recurrent problem that will not allow him to play 50 games a season. He himself said at the start of the season that “there are too many games, the schedule is overcrowded, and it’s at a dangerous level for players’ physical and mental well-being.”

Ten Hag may be using his best judgement to pick the 20-25 games a season that he needs Varane most. As for the Manchester derby, shocking as it might sound, rather than see that as a big game, the manager might have pragmatically written it off rather than waste one of his chips.

If there is a physical weakness, if Ten Hag admitted it publicly could allow opposition teams to target it. For instance, there are certain types of tackle that are hard on the knee, or the back.

If it is an ongoing physical issue, another big question is whether it will resolve in time or whether it is something that will need to be managed for the rest of Varane’s career. If it’s the latter, then United will have to move as soon as they can to bolster the defence and start to think about life beyond Raphael Varane.

The post What is going on with Raphael Varane at Manchester United? appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.

They sit currently eighth in the Premier League table with a negative goal difference, third in their Champions League group with a negative goal difference, and were recently dispatched from the Carabao Cup by a reserve Newcastle side in humiliating fashion.

There is no amount of contortion or context which can placate how awful a start Erik ten Hag‘s side have endured, with the performances often having been worse than the results. Even the victories United have managed to achieve have largely come in games they did not deserve to win.

It has not been a pretty picture off the pitch either.

In recent weeks, it appears the tide has been turning against the dogmatic Dutchman, after he had enjoyed such a successful debut season in England. The feelings of positivity surrounding the club over the summer have been vanquished, replaced by an all too familiar feeling of unease and unrest.

Rumours of dressing room discontent have rearer their ugly head. Reports linking the club to other managers have emerged in the press. Suggestions Ten Hag is on “thin ice” with the executive branch at Old Trafford were quickly refuted by the club, just as they were for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, and for Jose Mourinho before him, and for Louis Va…you get the picture.

This whirlwind of public negativity is, therefore, not a novel experience for the club. Rather, it is a continuation of the exact same playbook which has claimed the jobs of every United manager since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement. Ten Hag simply looks like the next victim in a horror film we’ve all seen before.

Yet, while the Dutch manager cannot, and should not, be exonerated completely for the dismal displays this season, he has earned more than enough goodwill from last season to be given the chance to steady a sinking ship; particularly when the almost unprecedented injury crisis he has faced is factored in.

And there are a range of statistics in comparison to his predecessors to prove why he should not join them on the P45 list, but rather be the first manager to break the post-Fergie curse.

Manchester United Manager’s Records

(Stats provided by The Daily Mail)

The immediate stand outs from this list are four-fold.

One – Ralf Rangnick’s tenure was as close to a complete disaster as you can possibly imagine.

Two – the best attacking unit a manager has been able to cultivate at Old Trafford since Sir Alex was his former pupil, Solskjaer.

Three – the best defensive record a manager has been able to achieve was, naturally, Mourinho’s. The fact he was also able to generate the joint second-best attacking return gives some credence to his assessment of his second season at Old Trafford being one of the “best jobs” in his illustrious career.

Four – Ten Hag’s win record is comfortably ahead of his predecessors. In fact, he even trumps Sir Alex (59.7%). Yet his ability to get his team to be effective at either end of the pitch – to score goals and to prevent them – is arguably the worst on the list, bar Rangnick. How does it make sense?

Last Season vs This Season

This season has proved a marked difference to the joy United fans were experiencing last year – a season in which it felt like the club had finally turned a corner. And that difference in emotion bears out statistically.

If the table above was adjusted to only include Ten Hag’s first season in charge, his record would look like this:

• Matches Played = 62
• Won = 41
• Drawn = 9
• Loss = 12
• Goals for = 108
• Goals scored per game = 1.74
• Goals against = 64
• Goals conceded per game = 1.03

More goals scored per game, less goals conceded per game, and an impressive win percentage of 66.1%. When you throw in a Carabao Cup win, a comfortable third place finish and an FA Cup Final, it shows Ten Hag was able to covert his statistical success into competitive triumph.

If the table was adjusted to only include this season, we begin to unpack the contrast between in the table above.

• Matches Played = 15
• Won = 7
• Drawn = 0
• Loss = 8
• Goals for = 20
• Goals scored per game = 1.25
• Goals against = 25
• Goals conceded per game = 1.67

A collection of numbers which makes Rangnick’s time at Old Trafford look a success.

Injuries vs Evolution

So evidently this season has skewed the statistics, particularly from a defensive perspective. But United’s performances this season make more sense when the injury crisis which has besieged the squad is considered.

Ten Hag has, for large parts of the season, been deprived of his first-choice back four. He’s also been without many of the first-choice reserves, relying on a hastily agreed loan deal for a Tottenham reject and a reincarnated Jonny Evans on a free to make up the numbers.

Simultaneous to these injury woes, Ten Hag has been attempting to install the next stage of his continued evolution of his United team.

Andre Onana, Mason Mount and Rasmus Hojlund were the three major signings in the summer, targeted at the behest of the Dutch manager. The commonality between their profiles are ones which lend themselves towards a high-octane, press-heavy style which attempts to put the opposition on the back foot.

Ten Hag spoke in the summer, at great length, about wanting to see United become the “best transition team in the world.” It’s a vision which, in his own words, honours both the DNA of the club, but also the strengths of his squad.

While this tactical choice has not borne fruits in terms of results, or even performances, there are a number of metrics which suggest United are moving in the direction their manager wants. This direction has been reliant upon a tweaked midfield set up however; one which has not seemingly lent itself towards one of the pillars of United’s success last season – Casemiro.

The Brazilian behemoth appears to have aged ten years in the space of a summer such is the contrast between his performance level this season versus last.

Casemiro was most effectively deployed last season in a 4-2-3-1 system with Christian Eriksen alongside him, whose intelligence and technical ability allowed him to be the primary source of ball progression from deep.

This freed up Casemiro to an extent, who was able to focus on midfield security or, if the situation permitted, striding forward himself. Five goals and six assists is an impressive return for a defensive midfielder in any league, let alone the Premier League.

This season, however, has seen Eriksen replaced by Mason Mount, with a more classical 4-3-3 formation being utilised. At the beginning of the season, Mount played almost as another number ten, alongside Bruno Fernandes, high up the pitch. The intention was to enforce the press-heavy style Ten Hag wishes to see; the reality was something far different.

Casemiro was left isolated, tasked with the role of progressing the ball from deep, as well as providing the midfield steel he is renowned for. As a result, he was seemingly unable to do either. The opening day fixture against Wolves most eminently demonstrated this issue, with the away side producing the most shots on United’s goal at Old Trafford for nearly two decades.

There are, therefore, two competing reasons why United have appeared so dysfunctional this season, which have coalesced to produce the historically poor start.

Ten Hag is attempting to implement a new style of football without the foundation of defensive strength he enjoyed last season. United’s new midfield structure would always take time to teethe; without the protection of a strong defence this teething process has devolved into a full on cavity.

The results speak for themselves.

The Argument for Patience 

There are a host of reasons to be justifiably worried by Ten Hag’s choices during his time at Old Trafford.

The recruitment has not improved the squad at a level commensurate with the money spent. Nearly £400 million has been invested on, for the most part, Ten Hag’s first-choice signings. Yet the team still feels like it has deficiencies in the same areas of the pitch as before the Dutchman was appointed.

To have started the derby against Manchester City with your £85 million winger (Antony) and your £60 million midfielder (Mount) on the bench, with Eriksen and Scott McTominay essentially playing in their place, is a clear admission of incompetent prolifigacy.

Similarly, the decision to pursue a transitional style of play, with Casemiro as a solitary deep-lying playmaker, behind two number tens (Fernandes and Mount) who operate best in the same area, appears misguided.

Yet how successful can any manager be when fielding a second-string defensive unit every game?

Mauricio Pochettino has endured a difficult start to life as Chelsea manager. His side sit currently 11th in the table with three draws and four losses from their opening ten games. While performances have actually been positive, results have not. It’s no surprise, therefore, that Pochettino has been without Reece James, Wesley Fofana and Ben Chilwell, as well as Malo Gusto and Trevoh Chalobah, for most of these games.

Jurgen Klopp suffered a similar experience to Ten Hag in the 2021/22 season. Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip and Joe Gomez were all ruled out during a period which saw Liverpool lose six times in the league across seven games; Sheffield United being the only side Klopp’s makeshift defence could overcome. The German faced questions strikingly similar to the ones being asked of Ten Hag.

Mikel Arteta’s title charge fell apart last season when William Saliba was ruled out for the run-in with an injury, resulting in Arsenal surrendering first position in the Premier League after having enjoyed it for 93% of the season prior. And that was just one member of his back four. Try the entire unit Mikel!

Even Pep Guardiola – whose City side were lauded to an almost nauseous level following the derby given there was zero mention of the 115 charges of financial breaches levelled against the club – lost three domestic games in a row only a month ago. The cause? A red card to Rodri – the player who functions as the defensive lynchpin of the midfield – and an injury to John Stones.

Ten Hag is, therefore, not alone in experiencing a string of abject performances and poor results when confronted with defensive absences.

United’s manager deserves to be afforded the time for his defence to return from injury before any definitive judgements are cast on his long-term future. Ten Hag was too successful in his first season, as demonstrated in the aforementioned table, to completely write off his second, when the defensive crisis is factored into the equation.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka played for the first time in two months against Newcastle and was a rare bright spot in an otherwise  appalling team display. Luke Shaw is scheduled to return towards the end of this month, while Raphael Varane is recovering from illness, and is potentially available to play this weekend. Lisandro Martinez won’t be available until the new year as he continues to recover from surgery.

Three out of four ain’t bad.

Ten Hag will have to hope it’s enough to see his side turn a very abrupt corner, and quick. With five winnable fixtures on the horizon – Fulham (A), Copenhagan (A), Luton (H), Galatasaray (A) and Everton (H) – the stage is set for United to rescue the season. Their manager will be hoping a rejuvenated defensive unit will be the foundation from which the rescue mission is launched.

The post A statistical analysis of Erik ten Hag compared to predecessors appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.

The wealth of Sir Jim Ratcliffe, one of Britain’s wealthiest men, is now of burning interest to millions of Manchester United fans across the globe, as he appears to have outmuscled Sheikh Jassim to become a part owner of the football club.

The Athletic has taken a deep dive into Sir Jim’s finances to map out to United fans just what their potential new minority investor could theoretically do.

The article begins by illustrating some of the incredible personal wealth Ratcliffe possesses. The Greater Manchester born billionaire is the proud owner of one of the world’s best cycling teams, a third of the Mercedes Formula One team and a $150m super yacht. To carry on the F1 theme, Ratcliffe has Michael Schumacher’s first ever Ferrari nestled safely in his personal garage. He is not short of a few bob.

To back this up, The UK Sunday Times Rich List of May 2023 places him in 2nd place with a net worth of just under £30m. He even topped the list in 2018. However, Ratcliffe slipped down to 27th over the next four years before storming back into second place this year.

The article puts this down to the fact that most of Sir Jim’s company’s wealth (INEOS) is tied up in some of the global economy’s “most cyclical sectors”. These include energy, chemicals and plastics where profits can “swing wildly” year to year. What is clear though, is Ratcliffe is worth a lot.

The Athletic attempts to shed light on the complexity of evaluating just how much wealth a billionaire has. The Sunday Times Rich List claim that they do not know how much money is in personal bank accounts or small shareholdings in private portfolios. The publication can only judge on what they call “identifiable wealth” such as land, property, racehorses, art or shareholdings in listed companies.

The chemicals company INEOS, which Sir Jim owns 60% of, is also complex to say the least. The business is broken up into 36 different ones, located in 194 sites within 29 different countries. To make things slightly simpler, for accounting purposes the company is separated into three main holding companies of which, only two publish public accounts.

Assessing the wealth of the chemicals giant is a bit of a guessing game to say the least. However, the article claims that in 2022 INEOS posted a revenue of £35bn and profits of £3.5bn. The Forbes Rich List have also taken a stab at Ratcliffe’s overall wealth. Their 2023 edition has placed the British billionaire in 67th place in the world, with an overall personal wealth of $22.9bn. However, The Athletic feels Forbes have made the error of only crediting Sir Jim with INEOS´s visible wealth.

No matter what way you look at it, if Ratcliffe is successful in buying the 25% stake in the club, he has money to bring to the table. United fans and shareholders however, are not so confident. Share prices plummeted in the aftermath of Sheikh Jassim’s announcement that he had withdrawn from the process of taking over the club and only the British-born billionaire was left as a viable option.

The Athletic argues this is due to Red Devils fans feeling like they have lost a game show. They look enviously at the wealth of the nation of Qatar and wonder what could have been? Sheikh Jassim’s bid boasted that they would purchase all of the 69% of the club owned by the Glazer family while clearing the debts, in cash. Old Trafford would also have hypothetically seen a lavish makeover.

Although, the article does try to reassure United fans about Ratcliffe’s offer. It is reported that INEOS won’t be happy being a minority partner for long and will see the 25% stake as the first step in a full takeover. It is also stated that the chemicals company regularly takes on debt much greater than United’s but has a “good credit history” where banks call the company to lend money and not the other way around. The publication goes on to assert that INEOS will also put any new debt on their own books and not the club’s. The opposite approach of the current owners.

The Athletic finishes by claiming that Sir Jim grew up around 10 minutes away from the stadium and knows that the Mancunian team could comfortably sell another 15,000 tickets per home game. Therefore, investing in Old Trafford is seen as inevitable by the piece’s author. It is also noted that the British company has experience in construction projects much more complicated than that of a football stadium.

What can be concluded then is Sir Jim Ratcliffe has huge amounts of personal wealth. The questions that all Man United fans need answering are, how much and how well will he spend it to get the club back to where it believes it belongs?

The post The wealth of Sir Jim Ratcliffe explored appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.

Players such as Marcus Rashford and Antony have come in for some stick from the likes of Ruud Gullit and Rio Ferdinand for not providing a proper service to Rasmus Hojlund, who is yet to get off the mark for United in the Premier League.

Before Hojlund, Cristiano Ronaldo seemed constantly frustrated by the lack of service provided to him.

As noted here yesterday, Rashford himself seems to perform better when not playing alongside a traditional CF. When a number 9 like Anthony Martial is deployed, there is more positional fluidity and Rashford seems to revel in that freedom.

Both Rashford and Antony have often been accused of being selfish players, more intent on cutting inside to take the shot themselves rather than putting in a cross for the striker to pounce on.

Could there be a very simple explanation as to why this is the case?

Rashford is a right footed player playing on the left wing. Antony is a left-footed player playing on the right wing. This plain fact means that their natural instinct will be to cut inside on their strong foot rather than reach the byeline and cross with their weaker foot.

The same could be said of Jadon Sancho, a right footer bought by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to play on the right wing but being deployed – until his exile – by Ten Hag mostly on the left.

Fans have often observed that Rashford does not seem as effective on the right as on the left, but to the naked eye, it would appear that he is far more likely to attempt a cross than to cut inside when deployed in that role. Perhaps some persistence playing him in that position would allow this aspect of his game to develop and as such, a better service would be provided to the central men.

This might come across as an old-fashioned approach to the game and the role of a winger is much more fluid these days than simply putting a good cross in. Much more emphasis nowadays is placed on the full backs to put in the crosses from the overlap. Liverpool have exploited this tactic perfectly with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson both in the top 10 PL crossers last season. Another full-back, Newcastle’s Kieran Trippier tops the list.

Nonetheless, if a winger is too one-footed, his game becomes too predictable and too easy to defend. The likes of Bukayo Saka at Arsenal and Jack Grealish at Manchester City also play the reverse wing to their stronger foot, but are arguably much stronger with their weaker foot than Rashford and Antony.

Looking at the Premier League’s crossing stats for both this season and last, Bruno Fernandes is United’s top crosser. In 2022/23 he was 19th in the PL rankings for number of crosses, this season he is fifth – possibly due to the proportion of games he has played in the right wing role.

Diogo Dalot is second for United this season and Christian Eriksen third. Rashford is fourth for United and only 77th in the PL overall for crosses delivered. Then comes Mason Mount before we finally find Antony in 108th position.

Last season, Bruno was again by far United’s most frequent crosser. Luke Shaw came second, but was only 38th in the league, then came Eriksen and Dalot, before Antony, in 125th place. Rashford was a shocking 148th.

Between them last season, Rashford and Antony totalled 56 crosses. Compare that to Trippier, who managed 393 on his own.

Luke Shaw is obviously a big miss for United in this area so far this season but it is still an issue. If switching Rashford and Antony’s sides seems too drastic, would it not be worth at least trying to have them alternate for sections of the game?

All stats from Premier League.com

The post Should Marcus Rashford and Antony swap sides at Man United? appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.

Altay Bayindir is Manchester United´s newest addition to the seemingly revolving door of the goalkeeping department.

The keeper made history by becoming the first Turk to sign for the club. However, whether or not the player is ready to take on the mantle of being Manchester United’s shot-stopper if called upon is up for debate.

Eyebrows were raised when Erik ten Hag overlooked Bayindir against Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup at the backend of September.

Nonetheless, the coach defended his decision claiming that the 25-year-old is progressing well in training and that the coaching staff are happy with him. Ten Hag also claimed that his choice was based on Onana´s need to “adapt to the English standard” according to The Mirror.

As a result, Manchester United fans are yet to see their new keeper in action. The Athletic have stepped in to give the supporters some much needed background on the man from Osmangazi.

The summer recruit is described as a solid all-round keeper who despite having space to grow, has had experience of some of “the most intense football games played on Earth”.

To continue with the good news, Bayindir has been portrayed as a world class one-on-one keeper with excellent reflexes. The Turk is also more than happy to race off his line to cut counter attacks. This quality has been put down to his time as Fenerbache’s number one, who are used to seeing the lion’s share of the ball in the Turkish Super Lig.

Although, all is not rosy in the garden of Altay. He has been described as having a weak passing game who struggles to make a “chipped through ball to the full-backs” to beat the first wave of the press.

If this is an accurate depiction, it makes Ten Hag’s desire to sign him this summer a strange one considering Andre Onana was recruited for just over 47 million pounds to enhance United’s ability to play out from the back.

Worryingly, his decision making when coming to claim crosses has also faced significant scrutiny. So, to sum up, United have purchased a keeper who has strong reflexes but struggles on the ball and in the air.

So it begs the question, haven’t the club gone down this road before with a certain David De Gea?

Altay Bayindir’s style is a curious choice to back up Andre Onana but the reality is, he may have to. The Cameroonian keeper is yet to decide whether or not he will play at the AFCON with his national side this January. Should he opt to, the Turkish shot-stopper will be thrown right into the lion’s den of post-Christmas Premier League football.

The Athletic finish the article with a more promising assertion that Bayindir is “an exciting recruitment that could turn out to be great with the right help and handling”. Let’s hope for both Manchester United’s and Turkey’s sake, this prediction comes into fruition.

The post An analysis of Manchester United´s new recruit Altay Bayindir appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.

As reported earlier today by The Peoples Person, the club’s annual report, released yesterday, shows that this summer’s entire transfer window was funded by loans.

These loans totalled around £130 million, leaving just £40 million of the club’s £300m credit facility left available.

United fans would not be shocked to see another January, like that of 2023, in which Ten Hag is told there is no money for transfers, even if key players are ruled out for the season.

But the bigger issue is what will happen next summer if Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s £1.3bn investment into the club does not go ahead.

There will literally be only £40 million available for transfers, assuming further borrowing does not take place between now and then.

If United exercise their buy option on Sofyan Amrabat of £21.4 million, only £18.6 will remain.

With Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad al Thani having pulled out of the race to sign United, Sir Jim has the Glazers over a barrel.

Unless they can secure credit elsewhere, which is becoming increasingly unlikely given the state of the club and the size of the existing debt, the INEOS chief is the only lifeline left for the Glazers.

An announcement over his investment is yet to come and there have been reports of issues to be ironed out in terms of whether or not he will be given total control over footballing matters.

If the Glazers refuse to accede to his demands and he walks away, it is hard to see how United can avoid financial ruin.

With no money for transfers and a decaying stadium and training facilities, we are looking at a scenario in which the greedy Glazers will have asset-stripped one of the world’s biggest football clubs into obscurity.

This really is make-or-break time for the entire future of the Red Devils. Whatever fans might think of Sir Jim or of the fact that it is not an outright sale, failure to complete this deal will be catastrophic.

The post Make or break time: Why Man United’s entire survival pivots on Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s investment appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.

Sitting 10th in the Premier League table, with a negative goal difference and four losses, constitutes the worst start to a Premier League campaign for United since the competition’s inception.

Continentally, Erik ten Hag’s men have fared even worse.

United sit bottom of their Champions League group with zero points, having lost both of their opening games.

The defeat to Galatasaray at Old Trafford was a particularly embarrassing loss; the very definition of a self-inflicted wound such were the mistakes made on the night.

Off-the-field, there has been little respite either. United’s protracted takeover saga looks set to continue, despite the prospect of a breakthrough in the last week, while dressing room unrest continues to fester.

Rays of optimism have, therefore, been in short supply in recent months for United fans.

Which is why an analysis of the radical improvements Ten Hag’s side have made in the realm of pressing, in comparison to last season, should provide some relief.

In pre-season, the Dutch manager spoke of his desire to see United become the “best transition team in the world.” This ambition would rely, in large part, on his side’s pressing and counter-pressing abilities.

The players Ten Hag requested from the Old Trafford hierarchy this summer – Andre Onana, Mason Mount and Rasmus Hojlund – are all strong in the transitional side of the game.

Mount and Hojlund are excellent pressers, while Onana’s vertical distribution should help launch quick counter-attacks.

The priority for Ten Hag was, therefore, to see United become dominant on the pitch through their dominance in the press.

As per statistics provided by Sky Sports, United’s pressing capabilities can be broken down into five distinct categories:

1. Pressed sequences
2. High turnovers
3. Possession won in final third
4. Possession won in middle third
5. Start distance

Last season, United ranked just above average across all five categories.

1. Pressed sequences = 14.3 = 8th
2. High turnovers = 8.6 = 6th
3. Possession won in final third = 5.4 5th
4. Possession won in middle third = 24.3 = 8th
5. Start distance = 42.8m = 6th

This season, however, despite the struggles in terms of results, United have made dramatic improvements in every metric.

1. Pressed sequences = 16.8 = 2nd
2. High turnovers = 11.3 = 1st
3. Possession won in final third = 7.8 = 1st
4. Possession won in middle third = 25.2 = 2nd
5. Start distance = 45.2m = 1st

While performances have been largely poor, and results even worse, the fact United are excelling in the exact areas Ten Hag envisioned in the summer offers optimism for an upturn in form.

It feels as if the current struggles are arising primarily from a combination of an unprecedented injury crisis, particularly in defence, and teething issues with this new style.

The extent of the injury list at Old Trafford has grown so severe the club have launched an internal investigation into the matter.

Up to sixteen members of the squad have suffered from injuries this year, with the entirety of Ten Hag’s back four ruled out at one point, as well as many of the first-choice reserves.

United’s issues, resulting heavily from defensive errors and backline fragility, make more sense when considering this context.

The hope would be that as Ten Hag’s side continues to acclimate to this new playing style, and key members of the squad return from injury, the performances should improve in line with the statistics above.

And as the performances improve so too, naturally, should the results.

It’s a rate of improvement Ten Hag will be desperate to see come to fruition with crucial fixtures in both the league and Europe on the horizon.

Neither United nor their manager can afford to squander the improvements made in pressing with a continuation of unimpressive results.

The post The improvements Manchester United have made off the ball appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.

When Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag decided to replace first-choice goalkeeper David de Gea with the younger Andre Onana, it appeared as if this controversial decision came due to the Dutch coach’s desire for a more modern keeper who fits in with his style of play.

Throughout last season, De Gea, who had proven to be Man United’s most reliable defensive player time and again during his decade with the club, showed signs of decline, from handling errors to lack of awareness as was the case in his team’s loss in the FA Cup Final against Manchester City.

Onana, on the other hand, had been a crucial player for Inter Milan, guiding his team to Coppa Italia victory with a 90% save success while also helping his team reach the Champions League final.

Once the summer transfer window opened, Ten Hag’s ambition became abundantly clear – to replace the aging De Gea with a keeper who knows how to play with the ball at his feet and support his outfield teammates.

But while the 27 year old appeared to be eclipsing the performances of the United veteran at the time of his signing, some alarming errors from Onana this season have raised concerns about whether Ten Hag made the right call when he forked out £47 million for the player and decided to part ways with De Gea.

In United’s opening Champions League group game against Bayern Munich, Onana failed to react to Leroy Sane’s long-range shot, thereby handing the lead to the Bundesliga side.

“Today is one of my worst games,” Onana admitted after the 4-3 loss, even admitting that “The team was good, we didn’t win this game because of me.”

In the Premier League, Onana’s performances have also been lacklustre, with the Cameroonian conceding 18 goals in 10 matches so far this season.

While many of United’s defensive woes must be accredited to several defenders’ performances and not just Onana himself, the marquee signing suffered a particularly bad night on Wednesday when United embarrassingly lost 3-2 at home to Galatasaray in the Champions League.

In fact, so troubling was Onana’s performance that Ten Hag admitted that he would personally speak with the goalkeeper in an effort to get him on the right track.

Yesterday, The Sun conducted a direct comparison between the performances of De Gea in his last three seasons with United and Onana during the current campaign.

The article showed that De Gea’s save percentage of 69.7% overshadowed Onana’s 64.7%, while the Spaniards errors leading to goals per 90 minutes including goals was 0.09, less than half of Onana’s 0.20.

Sports Brief reported that when it came to shots that did not find the back of the net, De Gea made 0.03 errors leading to a shot per match, while Onana made 0.2.

Still, saving ability was not the only reason why United signed Onana.

While Onana’s strong passing game and creativity with the ball at his feet have been widely recognised, the numbers show that his performance in these areas has not significantly exceeded that of De Gea.

André Onana David De Gea

𝐏𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐝:

34.3
27.66

𝐏𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐝:

26.1
19.1

𝐏𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐲:

76%
69%

André Onana comes out on top in all categories. pic.twitter.com/1WEXeQnkBJ

— Football Daily (@footballdaily) October 4, 2023

While Onana’s 76% passing accuracy may outpace De Gea’s 69% accuracy as shown in the above X post, it’s important to note that this is not a wide margin.

His superior performances with his feet also do not rule out the importance of his primary function, namely, making saves and keeping clean sheets as one should do at an elite club like United.

Although it is still far too early in the season to determine whether or not Onana’s transfer was a mistake, the goalkeeper will need to improve his game quickly in order to win favour with United fans, silence his critics, and ultimately show his ability to be the world class keeper that he proved himself to be prior to his move to Old Trafford.

The post Alarming statistics suggest that Erik ten Hag may have erred by replacing David de Gea with Andre Onana appeared first on Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person.