MANCHESTER UNITED hit a new rock bottom on Sunday as Ruben Amorim labelled this current team the worst in the club’s history.
A harrowing, humiliating 3-1 home defeat at the hands of Brighton sees the Red Devils slumped down in 13th in the Premier League table.
And this is also the worst home start to a campaign for more than 130 YEARS.
But exactly what went wrong against the Seagulls as United suffered their tenth league defeat of the season?
SunSport’s tactical guru Dean Scoggins broke down the game in the latest episode of Tactics Exposed…
1. DE LIGT AND YORO WEL BEATEN
At 34 years old, United could do with Danny Welbeck back at Old Trafford. How many strikers over a consistent period have done a good a job as him since he left in 2014?
It was a great performance up front but it was also the way he and Joao Pedro absolutely led Matthijs de Ligt and Leny Yoro on a merry dance.
This is not the first time we’ve talked about defenders getting dragged out by a striker on a rope but this is the longest rope I’ve ever seen.
Because both strikers dropped in, both defenders just decided to go with them which then left space for the really dangerous wingers Yankuba Minteh and Kaoru Mitoma to run into.
It was 4-4-2 demolishing 3-4-3.
2. WING-BACKS PINNED BACK
But we also have to give enormous credit to Brighton and Fabian Hurzeler.
It really was virtually an old-school 4-4-2, albeit with the centre-backs dropping so that the wingers could go on.
The United wing-backs don’t trust the centre-backs because they couldn’t afford to push on in case they lost possession as De Ligt and Yoro could not cover as they were occupied by the strikers.
So Harry Maguire was kind of like not doing anything – and that’s not a criticism of Maguire – because there was no passing on of players to pick up.
Consistently throughout the game, the wing-backs were deeper than the three centre-backs which is mad.
Maybe Maguire is being told not to leave that central square and not dragged out of position whatsoever – but they’ve got to be more intelligent.
3. I’M A BALEBA
Yes he gave away the penalty for United after Joshua Zirkzee did very well with his pressing but that was his only mistake because Carlos Baleba was excellent.
He was the consistent one, the single pivot who Brighton played off.
With the ball, he can drop in between the two centre-backs then without it, he sat in front and just mopped everything up.
It was 2v1 – Ugarte and Mainoo against Baleba – but he bossed it.
What I liked most was he knew when to go with that direct ball to the wingers and when to put his foot on the ball.
It was a top-class performance and how Manchester United fans wish he was in a red shirt.
Would he make them better? Yes, I think he’s better than Ugarte but maybe not quite as technical a footballer as Mainoo but has other things.
4. ONANA, OH-NO-NO!
The horrible, horrible error was woeful and let’s not forget at that stage United were still in the game.
The set-up looks good with one centre-back going into midfield with one of the two midfielders, usually Ugarte, while the other two centre-backs split and Mainoo can join Bruno Fernandes in the No10s with the wing-backs high and the centre forward.– Sun.