Ten Hag and seven others to blame as Man Utd lose to Man City

Man City v Man Utd: Pictures

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Manchester United were blown away by Manchester City in Sunday’s derby showdown at the Etihad Stadium. Erling Haaland and Phil Foden both bagged hat-tricks for the home side, with Antony and Anthony Martial scoring consolations in return. It was a shambolic day for the Red Devils, so Express Sport will now take a look at those who are to blame for the crushing result.

Ed Woodward

Ed Woodward has been gone from United since the start of the year.

But if he’d been bold enough to land Haaland back in the January transfer window of 2020, things would potentially be different.

Woodward didn’t consider Haaland worth the money and hassle of dealing with the late Mino Raiola, which is why he left Red Bull Salzburg for Borussia Dortmund that year instead.

Given the 22-year-old’s sensational goalscoring talents, that now looks like an even graver mistake than first believed.

Richard Arnold

Richard Arnold replaced Woodward, with the United supremo then overseeing the club’s transfer business in the summer.

However, like his predecessor, he’s already made some big mistakes at the club.

Arnold said United had the money for Frenkie de Jong and allowed the club to spend three months pursuing the Barcelona star – only to miss out.

He then brought in Casemiro as an alternative but the Brazil international doesn’t seem to have earned Ten Hag’s trust, despite his brilliant reputation.

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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

It’s telling that just two of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s signings started the game for United against City.

Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane, who both arrived a year ago, were unleashed from the beginning of the contest.

But the rest of his signings are either gone from the club or unable to make it in to Erik ten Hag’s starting XI.

That speaks volumes, and suggests his recruitment has set the Red Devils back a considerable amount with Ten Hag unable to cure every problem after just one summer in the job.

Erik ten Hag

Ten Hag himself must shoulder blame for the result, of course.

The United boss got his selection for the game wrong. He opted to fight fire with fire, but that was a decision that was always destined to backfire.

Casemiro should have been named in the starting XI, with Scott McTominay enduring a dreadful day at the office before being hooked in the second half.

And United needed an outlet to aim at in attack. Cristiano Ronaldo would potentially have been a better target man than Marcus Rashford, but the Portugal international was left on the bench.

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Diogo Dalot

Diogo Dalot has made some considerable improvement at United over the past year.

But, right from the very beginning, the Portugal international looked off the pace.

Jack Grealish posed the former Porto star all sorts of problems, resulting in the defender picking up a yellow card during the early stages of the contest.

Dalot’s panicky performance set the tone for what was to follow, and it’s no wonder United are still looking for another right-back as they plan for a brighter future.

Scott McTominay

McTominay was picked ahead of Casemiro.

But the Scotland international was dire in midfield, with Christian Eriksen not much better alongside him.

United signed Casemiro because, as one of the best players in the world, he has the potential to take this team to new heights.

Why, therefore, isn’t he being picked? It’s a mystery, one of many from United’s short and turbulent campaign so far.

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Tyrell Malacia

Tyrell Malacia was selected ahead of Luke Shaw.

But the Netherlands international experienced the worst performance of his United career do date, with the left-back torn apart by Foden.

It was no surprise to see his number come up at half time, with Shaw then thrown on instead.

And Malacia will need to bounce back to keep Shaw out of the team, with the England international doing far better following his second half introduction.

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Marcus Rashford

United decided to gamble by picking Marcus Rashford up top.

But while the England international has shown some signs of improvement, the 24-year-old was flat as his side crashed to defeat.

There’s still a sense Rashford is better on the left wing, with the forward barely posing a threat.

Martial, now he’s back from injury, should be unleashed up top going forward with his team-mate’s position either changed – or put on the bench. 

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