Pranav Nair
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer called out Fred as Manchester United draw against Southampton
According to The Express, Manchester United manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has called out Brazilian midfielder Fred following his side’s disappointing 1-1 draw at Southampton.
The Red Devils looked a million miles away from the devastating performance they put up against Leeds United. The night could have gotten much worse had Adam Armstrong pounced on Harry Maguire’s mistakes.
Solskjaer however has chosen to point out one player’s performances in particular on the night. He believes Fred should have done better in the buildup to Southampton’s opener.
“He should have made a better block.”
The Saints opened the scoring on the night thanks to Armstrong. The striker long-range strike took a deft deflecti8on of Fred to nestle in the corner of David de Gea’s net.
While it is debatable if De Gea could have saved it otherwise, Solskjaer believes the goal should not have stood. He believes there was a foul in the buildup to the goal and the call should have gone in his side’s favour.
Either way, he believes Fred should not have left his leg dangling. Instead, he admits that the midfielder should have made a better block.
“It was 100 per cent a foul but Fred shouldn’t have dangled his leg.”
The Norwegian went on to add that the referee turned a blind eye to some strong challenges against United players. Unless it is reined in, players could go down injured.
“You know what they are going to do, kick our players, and there are quite a few fouls the referee has let go.”
Mason Greenwood scored his second goal in two games to draw United level in the second half. The youngster looks to be in fine nick and has prospered in the absence of Edinson Cavani.
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It is quite surprising that Solskjaer chose to call out Fred given that the Brazilian than not worse than anyone else on the field. Fernandes if anything should have done a better job shielding the ball than go down easily expecting a foul.
While Fred could certainly have done better, it does not excuse us from failing to break down the Saints backline in spite of the attacking riches at our disposal. In fact, Solskjaer’s substitutions barely made any dent in the proceedings either. It was far from Fred’s fault that we dropped the points on the night.
