A point against Aston Villa is certainly not a bad result for Manchester United, particularly after the few days the respective clubs have had.
While Villa were defeating Bayern Munich in a historic week, United let a two-goal lead slip against Porto and ultimately salvaged a last-gasp 3-3 draw in the Europa League.
It was a horror night for Erik ten Hag. It was a night of triumph for Villa. Yesterday’s game was anything but. It was a pretty torrid game of football, truth be told, with the match ending with the lowest xG we’ve seen in a Premier League clash for two years.
So, was there much to take from the game? Well, avoiding defeat has probably given Ten Hag a few more weeks in the dugout.
The Dutchman has been under increasing scrutiny at Old Trafford and could well lose his job if their sequence of results continues. After all, this has been their worst start after seven games to a Premier League season.
Perhaps Jonny Evans could save him…
Man United's best performers vs Aston Villa
United failed to conjure up too many moments of magic in the final third with Bruno Fernandes coming closest, hitting the far with a lovely free-kick.
So, it was over to their defence to remain resolute. Lisandro Martinez and Matthijs de Ligt were both dropped and in came Harry Maguire and Evans.
Maguire limped off at half-time and had to be substituted but he and the Northern Irishman were both fantastic. Evans notably won all five of his aerial duels and won six of his seven ground battles on the way to winning the game’s Player of the Match award.
Minutes played
90
Touches
54
Accurate passes
36/42 (86%)
Ground duels won
6/7
Aerial duels won
5/5
Possession lost
6x
Fouls
1
Clearances
3
Tackles
4
Dribbled past
0
Key passes
0
Shots
1
Diogo Dalot was also in better form after his nightmare start to the new season at left-back. He was caught off guard by Brennan Johnson against Spurs last week but was in the right place at the right time to block what looked like a certain goal for Jaden Philogene in the 92nd minute.
The ball fell to the Villa wideman at the back post but Dalot got into position and blocked a powerful effort well.
Of course, it wasn’t all positive for United. Their frontline continues to falter.
Man United's worst performer against Aston Villa
Ten Hag’s men may well have found the net three times in midweek but it is now three straight league outings without a goal.
That drought started against Crystal Palace, continued at home to Spurs and then they unfortunately looked just as toothless against Emery’s team.
It was felt as though young Rasmus Hojlund would make a difference but he was anonymous on Sunday afternoon and was consequently dragged off after 64 minutes in the Midlands.
Why? Well, he ineffectively held the ball up, didn’t run the channels well and failed to present himself as a strong target inside the area.
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As Manchester Evening News reporter Samuel Luckhurst noted in the process of handing the Dane a 4/10 match rating, he ‘got nowhere with or without the ball’ during his time on the field.
Minutes played
64
Touches
15
Accurate passes
5/6 (83%)
Key passes
0
Dribbles
0/2
Crosses
0
Duels won
1/5
Fouls
1
Shots
0
That was perhaps best exemplified by the fact that Hojlund’s touch count of 15 was far fewer than goalkeeper Andre Onana’s haul of 37.
His pass count of just five was also far fewer than Onana’s 21. The 21-year-old will no doubt improve as he builds up his fitness but he may well find himself dropped after the international break.
This was a sorry display, one further typified by his lightweight nature in the duel, winning just one of five battles against the Villa defence. He got no change at all from the likes of Pau Torres and Diego Carlos.
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1 ByEthan LambOct 5, 2024