Well, this is going to be painful, but here as 5 things we learned as Man United lost 6-3 to Man City…
Manchester United have been brought crashing back down to earth. The Old Trafford club were battered, particularly in the first 45 minutes, going into half-time 4-0 down. The scoreline became better in the second half, though the damage was already done.
The game itself was an extremely tough watch. there’s no getting away from that. City showed their superiority. United wilted under the pressure – something we’ve become way more accustomed to than we’d all like.
Anyway, let’s get right into the nitty-gritty of this one.
Reality check
First and foremost, this is a jolt right back down to earth. There’s a real gulf in class between these two sides. That gap remains despite the small improvements made by United under Ten Hag.
This is a weird thing to say, but there are going to be more games like that this season. Ten Hag needs time, money and patience to get this side playing 100% as he wants. City are just way further along in their process.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing
I see fans calling for Scott McTominay’s head, Marcus Rashford’s, too. Everyone is suddenly stating that Casemiro should have started this one. Yeah, no…
Casemiro has not been good thus far, whereas McTominay went into his derby with form under his belt. I honestly felt like this decision was a no-brainer. You can’t change your opinion after the fact. Yes, the Scotland international wasn’t good today, but Ten Hag made the right call to start him here.
Martial will thrive under Ten Hag
After an excellent pre-season and a stunning cameo against Liverpool, I’m so excited to see the Frenchman get a proper run in this team.
He scored twice today to make this one far less embarrassing than it could have been, leading the line well and looking like the perfect striker.
I guess it all comes down to Martial’s ability to stay fit. If that can be achieved, then United have a top-class forward on their hands.
We’ve still got a long way to go in the process
Look at Guardiola and Klopp. Both needed multiple seasons before their managerial qualities were on full display. It’s disappointing to lose in this manner, but it’s all part of the learning curve.
It’s hard to remain patient, but this squad is going to continue to change as Ten Hag slowly builds a dressing room that is perfectly aligned with his footballing philosophy. As stated earlier, there will be many more bumps in the road before success is achieved.
Ten Hag isn’t afraid to make the bold calls
The Dutchman kept Cristiano Ronaldo rooted to the bench for one of United’s biggest games of the season. Obviously, that won’t sit well with the GOAT – though it was absolutely the correct decision.
Ronaldo hasn’t been good this term. There are still doubts about whether he actually wants to be here, too. This does send out a message to the rest of the squad. It feels good to have a manager who’ll put the team first over any individual.
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