Siddharth Juyal
Manchester United legend Paul Scholes gave his verdict over the team’s performance against Luton Town on Saturday
Manchester United legend Paul Scholes shared his analysis of the team’s performance against Luton Town on Saturday. The Red Devils won the hard-fought Premier League game 1-0 at Old Trafford as visitors put up a good fight.
United have nine losses from 18 games in all competitions this season as they suffered from injuries and tactical imbalance. However, the Red Devils are just three points away from the top four with fourth-placed Liverpool having a game in hand.
United manager Erik ten Hag struggled to consistently keep a particular style of play amid injuries and poor individual performances. The Red Devils looked open in defence when they dominated possession and played an adventurous football.
On the other hand, they lacked creativity and substantial counter-attack threat while deploying a cautious approach.
Speaking to Premier League Productions (h/t Manchester Evening News), Scholes pointed out that United accomplished the task, but the performance remained sub-par. He said:
“They got the job done. It wasn’t a great performance, as we’ve seen, probably didn’t create as much as you would have liked. Luton made it very difficult for them throughout the game but it’s job done. They’ve won the game and hopefully now [they have] a nice little break for a couple of weeks and come back and find a bit of form.”
Ten Hag deployed a rigid 4-2-4 formation, instructing wide attackers to stick to the byline instead of cutting inside regularly. Erik ten Hag deployed United captain Bruno Fernandes in an advanced midfielder role, closer to the leading forward Rasmus Hojlund.
The formation helped the striker exploit pockets of spaces as wide attackers stretched the opponent’s defensive organisation. Furthermore, the double-pivot midfield helped shore up the defensive channels and act as a link between the defence and Fernandes.
The new strategy dominated FC Copenhagen during the first half hour of the 4-3 Champions League defeat that United suffered.
However, Luton Town gave a much better challenge to the Red Devils and stayed in the game till the end. Both teams had four shots on target at the end of the game as Victor Lindelof’s goal became the difference.
More Manchester United News-
- “Quite good position” – Erik ten Hag believes Manchester United have made a good start to the Premier League
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- “We could make life more easy” – Erik ten Hag wants Manchester United to improve despite Luton Town win
United have won four out of their last five Premier League game and need to build on it. The top-four finish is the minimum expectation for a club of United’s stature. Ten Hag also has two must-win Champions League games against Galatasaray and Bayern Munich. The Red Devils cannot afford a demoralising elimination before the Champions League knockout stages.
