Manchester United hosted Marco Silva’s Fulham at Old Trafford with the team undoubtedly looking to make it five Premier League wins in a row.
Erik ten Hag was forced into two personnel changes, with Luke Shaw and Rasmus Hojlund ruled out of the clash with injuries.
Andre Onana started in goal with a defensive four of Diogo Dalot, Raphael Varane, Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof ahead of him.
It was Lindelof’s first start in more than two months.
In midfield, Ten Hag gave the nod to Casemiro, Kobbie Mainoo and Bruno Fernandes.
Marcus Rashford started his 200th Premier League game in an attacking line also consisting of Alejandro Garnacho and Omari Forson, who was making his first senior start for United.
Here are three things we learned from Manchester United’s 2-1 defeat against Fulham.
Poor first half
United were very poor in the opening 45 minutes and were lucky not to go into the break one or two goals down.
The Red Devils appeared very lethargic and lacked any real urgency in whatever actions they were trying to execute.
The Cottagers were first to everything, with their midfield of Sasa Lukic, Andreas Pereira, Alex Iwobi and Harry Wilson doing a good job of pegging United into their own half.
Marco Silva’s men fashioned the better and more clear-cut chances.
Iwobi could have broken the deadlock early on. Fulham did well, with their midfielders combining to open up United. Muniz dragged his defender away as Iwobi kept on going. Fortunately, the Nigerian superstar’s shot was off target.
Iwobi had another chance to get on the score sheet when he was put through on goal by Pereira. He sent Varane the wrong way but once again, just dragged his shot wide with only Onana to beat.
Pereira also had two cracks at goal. The ex-United man had an early shot easily saved by Onana. However, for the Brazilian’s second attempt – a curling effort worried the goalkeeper a bit more but the Cameroonian managed to get a strong hand to it.
Muniz came the closest to shedding first blood for his side. The striker received a ball inside the United box, showed good strength to shrug off Lindelof and turn before thumping it into the post.
United’s best chance came through Dalot whose 25-yarder clipped the woodwork to go wide. Garnacho also had a sight of goal but his shot was cleared off the line by a Fulham defender.
Beyond dominating in terms of chances created, Fulham were better defensively. They kept United at bay and prevented them from mounting any meaningful spells of pressure or possession.
At times in the first half, United’s play seemed too frantic and rushed. Often, the 20-time English champions resorted to long balls and hopeful diagonals in an attempt to drive up the pitch and cause Fulham problems.
The passing was awful and United never really got into their rhythm –Â a surprise considering the winning run the team has been on recently.
Most of the club’s players were below-par. The likes of Casemiro, Fernandes, Rashford and Lindelof all didn’t cover themselves in glory.
The team’s performance in the first period of the game reeked of a side not well-coached, poorly drilled or unable to execute the manager’s instructions effectively.
United certainly rode their luck and were lucky not to have been punished for their woeful display. No doubt Ten Hag would have made his players aware of his dissatisfaction.
Ten Hag not doing himself any favours
United somehow managed to play even worse in the second half and while the players are to blame, the responsibility ultimately lies with Ten Hag.
It’s been worrying all season that United can’t seem to control games even against the weakest of oppositions.
Even when they’ve won, the Red Devils haven’t been really convincing and have left a lot to be desired. Fulham was always going to be a tough test but United made it harder for themselves.
The London outfit took the lead in the 65th minute through Calvin Bassey – from a corner kick. Set pieces have been an issue for United all term but to date, this weakness has yet to be addressed.
United were unable to clear the lines and handed Bassey two tries at goal. The first hit a player but on his second attempt, the defender made no mistake as he fired the ball into the roof of the net.
Even before Fulham scored, the fans at Old Trafford were evidently restless and at some point grew agitated by the slow pace of the team’s play. The groans were audible whenever a play decided to pass back even when there was an option of going forward.
More glaring, Fulham fans were taunting the home support with chants of “How s— must you be, we’re winning away”. For context, Silva’s side had not won in the league since the opening day of the campaign.
United restored parity in the 87th minute courtesy of Maguire.
Fernandes launched a shot that was spilt by Bernd Leno. Luckily, Maguire was at the right place at the right time to tap the ball in from close range.
However, with United pushing for a winning goal after nine minutes were added on, Fulham took the lead once more to secure their victory and clinch all three points.
Adama Traore unsurprisingly beat Eriksen and Maguire for pace and broke into the final third. The ball found its way to Iwobi inside the box. The Fulham star scored to break United fans’ hearts.
As if symbolically, Garnacho collapsed to the ground in utter defeat while Fernandes could be seen in a fit of rage.
After confirmation that he had completed his deal for a partial 27.7% investment into the club, Sir Jim Ratcliffe spoke to the media and opened up on a number of issues including the future of Ten Hag under his regime.
Ratcliffe refused to give assurances that the Dutchman will be at the helm by next season, instead choosing to highlight the poor environment at United managers have had to work under in recent years.
In fact, the INEOS billionaire hinted at a possible change in the dugout by claiming his organisation is not brutal but at times, radical decisions must be made.
Just hours later, Ratcliffe spoke to financial outfit Bloomberg and was once again questioned about Ten Hag’s tenure.
The British businessman evaded the question again and gave a general answer that didn’t give too much away.
"Do you have confidence in the manager?"
Manchester United's new owner Jim Ratcliffe tells Bloomberg that "this is not about" manager Erik ten Hag, as speculation continues about the billionaire's future plans for the team https://t.co/Xg8kmkDvTm pic.twitter.com/ZozYp48tWH
— Bloomberg (@business) February 23, 2024
INEOS are definitely watching. Sir Dave Brailsford was in the stands. The new regime, like most of the fans, can’t be happy with what happens on the pitch every week.
Ten Hag is not doing himself any favours and is making it easier for him to be sacked.
Antony is firmly at the bottom of the pecking order
During his presser ahead of United’s clash vs. Fulham, Ten Hag weighed in on Antony’s situation and why the winger is currently not playing.
In United’s last two matches vs. Aston Villa and Luton Town, Antony has not had a taste of minutes.
Ten Hag insisted that Antony is still in his plans and it was up to him to do better. The player who turned 24 today, has yet to register a goal or assist in the Premier League this season.
However, the United boss overlooked him once again against Fulham.
It was more telling that when things got tough, Ten Hag resorted to other players ahead of Antony – a player he coached at Ajax and splashed so much money on to bring to the club.
In the absence of Rasmus Hojlund, Ten Hag preferred naming Forson in the starting XI instead of the more experienced Antony.
In the 53rd minute, Ten Hag made his first personnel changes. He brought on Christian Eriksen and Scott McTominay for Forson and Casemiro respectively. It’s important to note that Antony was on the bench.
In the dying embers of proceedings, Ten Hag brought on Amad Diallo to replace young Mainoo.
Even Diallo, who has barely had a sniff since coming back from injury seems to be ahead of Antony in the pecking order. Antony was substituted with just seconds remaining on the clock.
