As the full-time whistle rang out, the ever-outspoken Gary Neville was quick to criticise Manchester United’s display. He was appalled, quickly labelling it a “disgrace”.
It’s harsh but true. What this great club has become is nothing short of a laughing stock. From the halcyon days of Sir Alex Ferguson to the rubble, almost quite literally, that engulfs them at Old Trafford in 2024, they are a shadow of their former selves.
This United side under Erik ten Hag, put it simply, has not been good enough and they showed as much against Tottenham on Sunday evening, losing 3-0. Brennan Johnson, Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke were all on hand to put the Red Devils to the sword in a match where the hosts were totally outplayed, even before Bruno Fernandes’ red card.
It was the highest xG (4.67) by a visiting team since Manchester City thrashed Norwich at Carrow Road in 2022. That just about sums it up.
So, who do we blame? You can certainly look to Ten Hag. It’s not getting any better for him, nor is it getting any better for club captain Fernandes.
Fernandes’ performance in numbers
Over the last couple of weeks, the Portuguese has started to become a hindrance rather than a help.
It’s a puzzling situation, really. He’s the best player at the club, quite comfortably too. Most things tick through him and when he’s not on song, United struggle.
Last term the former Sporting man was at his brilliant best, scoring 15 goals and supplying 13 assists in all competitions. This season? Well, he’s yet to find the net or assist a single goal in the Premier League. It’s pretty grim reading, truth be told.
It’s over the last three matches now that the Portugal international has really struggled. Handed a 4/10 match rating by MEN’s Samuel Luckhurst for his showing in the 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace, Fernandes ceded possession a quite remarkable 34 times.
It didn’t get much better against Spurs this weekend either with the 30-year-old completing just 78% of his passes and losing every duel he entered before being sent off.
Harsh or not, it was a clumsy error from Fernandes who was given his marching orders for a rash challenge on James Maddison. He will now miss the next three games.
That said, he wasn’t the only underperformer in red, far from it.
Diogo Dalot’s performance in numbers
Fernandes’ international colleague Diogo Dalot was in sparkling form during the 2023/24 campaign, winning Manchester United’s Player of the Season award.
He deputised well at left-back and flourished at right-back, ending the year with a haul of three goals and five assists.
This season, however, the difference has been stark. Dalot is noticeably struggling at left-back and was given a right runaround by Spurs winger Johnson on Sunday evening.
Handed a 3/10 rating by the aforementioned Luckhurst, he wrote that the defender was ‘so bad for the first goal he held his hands up before Brennan Johnson had scored’.
If that didn’t typify his display then his yellow card did. Dalot gifted the ball away and then in the process of trying to win it back rashly fouled Johnson.
To make matters worse, the 25-year-old completed a dismal total of 74% of his passes, handing away possession 13 times as he somehow survived the full 90 minutes.
|
Dalot vs Spurs |
|
|---|---|
|
Minutes played |
90 |
|
Accurate passes |
32.43 (74%) |
|
Touches |
55 |
|
Key passes |
0 |
|
Crosses |
0 |
|
Long balls |
4/10 |
|
Duels won |
3/4 |
|
Clearances |
2 |
|
Interceptions |
3 |
|
Tackles |
2 |
|
Possession lost |
13x |
|
Fouls |
1 |
|
Shots |
0 |
|
Dribbles |
0 |
|
Stats via Sofascore. |
|
Truth be told, the Portuguese simply has to move back to a right-sided role. He will no doubt thrive there but for now, Ten Hag will surely lust after the return of a certain Luke Shaw.
Saying that, not even he could save the mess at Old Trafford right now. Sadly enough, the Dutch boss has bigger fish to fry than solving Dalot’s inconsistencies on the left.
