Pranav Nair
Paul Scholes identifies three Manchester United stars who excelled against Manchester City
According to the Metro, Manchester United legend, Paul Scholes earmarked three stars for special praise following the derby stalemate yesterday night.
United and City played out an efficient, if rather underwhelming, derby that ended 0-0. A key aspect of the match was the improved performance put up by the United defence following their lacklustre outing at Leipzig.
The United rearguard was solid, disciplined if unspectacular. However, it cannot be argued that they were effective in stunting the City attack.
This pleased Scholes who reserved special praise for Harry Maguire, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Victor Lindelof. (h/t Metro)
It would be fair to say that neither attack probed the opposition defence much. But the United trio was alert and dealt with whatever was sent their way.
“Defensively, Wan-Bissaka throws himself into challenges, Lindelof was as good as he probably has been and Maguire was good.”
Maguire also went close with a header at the other end in a game that lacked many clear cut chances.
Scholes was, however, less than impressed with the defensive setup Ole Gunnar Solskjaer started the game with. The Norwegian went with both Scott McTominay and Fred to give the United backline dual protection. (h/t Metro)
He attributed the need for United to do so by referring to the mistakes our defenders made against Tottenham Hotspur earlier in the season.
Newtons/Solskjaer’s Third Law?
While the duo did their job it came at a cost. They failed to contribute to the attack, forcing Scholes to question the balance of the team. (h/t Metro)
“They look much more solid with the two holding midfield players but then they don’t look like they’re going to score goals.”
More Manchester United News
- Manchester United loanee Diogo Dalot aims to convince AC Milan to sign him permanently
- Kylian Mbappe reveals he has a soft spot for Manchester United
- Manchester United and Manchester City to battle it out for Erling Braut Haaland
While we have seen much better performances from United under Solskjaer, the Norwegian decided to play it safe against City.
His plan did work with our backline dealing with whatever Pep Guardiola’s side had to throw at us. The attack, however, left much to be desired and Solskjaer will need to come up with a system that is effective in both ends of the field.
