It turned out to be a horror Sunday for Manchester United as their nine-game unbeaten run came to a grinding halt as they succumbed to 1-3 thrashing at the hands of Aston Villa.
The West Midlands club, who brought in Unai Emery as their new boss, rode on their new manager bounce, and scored twice in the first-half through Leon Bailey and Lucas Digne before securing the points through Jacob Ramsey’s second-half strike.
Erik ten Hag was hampered due to the Thursday-Sunday routine with quite a few players looking fatigued with their main creative force Christian Eriksen, in particular, looking quite jaded.
Dalot will be missed
He was not helped by the fact that the ever-present Bruno Fernandes was suspended for the game and his replacement Donny van de Beek was lacklustre.
The Dutch midfielder does not seem cut out to play for United and it is better to offload him in January. The manager’s selection calls certainly did not pay off as it would have been better to play either of Scott McTominay or Fred.
🟨 A yellow card means Diogo Dalot will be suspended for Gameweek 16…#FPL #AVLMUN pic.twitter.com/U8NbLuCAoO
— Fantasy Premier League (@OfficialFPL) November 6, 2022
The lack of attacking substitutions and the poor performance from Cristiano Ronaldo also played their part in United succumbing to their fourth Premier League loss of the season.
The former Ajax boss will not only have to motivate his squad and get them firing again ahead of the last league fixture before the World Cup but will have to do it without right-back Diogo Dalot.
The Portuguese received his fifth yellow card of the season and just like Fernandes, the full-back will now miss the game against Fulham.
Dalot is yet to miss a game and Ten Hag will have to figure a way to shuffle the pack to ensure his side can put in a good display. The 22-year-old has been among the most improved players and will be sorely missed.
Malacia over Lindelof
The right-back slot has proved to be another troublesome aspect in the squad for the new boss. He does not rate Aaron Wan-Bissaka who is said to be close to a return to Crystal Palace in January.
The options include playing Victor Lindelof there but his lack of attacking impetus might severely affect United’s chances of breaking down Fulham.
The more conceivable idea is to play left back Tyrell Malacia there. The Netherlands full-back has played there a couple of time so far this season and he has the energy and discipline to bomb up and down the right flank.
Dalot will be a huge miss but Ten Hag will be hoping his squad can make up for his absence. For now, United have the chance at revenge as they take on the same opposition in the Carabao Cup in midweek.
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