Pranav Kannan
Manchester United players endure a night to forget on international duty
It was a tough day at the office for Manchester United players who were on international duty last night, with Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot failing to beat Spain and book a place in the Nations League knockouts.
Despite scoring a brace in Portugal’s previous outing against the Czech Republic, Man United right-back Diogo Dalot surprisingly found himself an unused substitute in the loss against La Roja as he saw his side crash out of the Nations League.
Bruno Fernandes and Cristiano Ronaldo on the other hand started the game for Portugal and played the full ninety minutes to no avail. The star duo had a poor outing last night and were not able to conjure up anything special when it mattered most.
Elsewhere, Fred who started the game for Brazil in the 5-1 rout against Tunisia did not have the best of outings. For a player who generally tends to impress when he plays for the national team, the Man United midfielder struggled with some wayward passes.
Man United youngster Facundo Pellistri made the bench with Uruguay in their 2-0 win against Canada but did not get to feature in the game. He remained an unused substitute on the bench and will now return to Manchester.
New Red Devils acquisition Lisandro Martinez who started the previous game for Argentina was brought on as a late substitute for Angel di Maria in his side’s 3-0 win against Jamaica in the international friendly last night.
After a poor start to the season where they recorded two losses back to back, the Red Devils slowly yet surely seem to be getting up to shape under Erik ten Hag. They will want to continue performing in a similar vein after the international break.
In his short time as the manager of the Red Devils, Erik ten Hag has already managed to secure wins against Liverpool and Arsenal. This will give the club a lot of confidence going into a hectic October schedule.
A huge test awaits the Red Devils this weekend. Manchester United will take on local neighbours Manchester City in the derby and Ten Hag will be hoping that his players are fit and ready to face Pep Guardiola’s team.
More Manchester United News
- Manchester United opted against signing Villarreal centre-back Pau Torres as Erik ten Hag wanted Lisandro Martinez
- Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham to snub Manchester United for Real Madrid
- Michael Carrick ‘not surprised’ by the quality Christian Eriksen has brought to the Manchester United midfield
The international break is over and it is time to focus on club football now. October could make or break the season for Man United and let’s hope Erik ten Hag manages to get us through this tricky period in flying colours.
