Gary Neville says Man Utd must fix ‘massive embarrassment’ that left them ‘a mess everywhere’
MANCHESTER UNITED legend Gary Neville has highlighted one key area Erik ten Hag must fix.
The Dutchman won the FA Cup to save his job after a poor showing in the Premier League.
Gary Neville thinks Erik ten Hag has one major area to focus on
GettyMatthijs De Ligt, Leny Yoro, Joshua Zirkzee and Noussair Mazraoui, left to right, arrived this summer[/caption]
Ahead of tonight’s clash with Fulham, Neville branded the amount of shots United conceded last season a “massive embarrassment.”
Ten Hag opted for a 4-2-2-2 formation against the Cottagers in a bid to tighten things up.
And Sky Sports pundit Neville commented: “Manchester United had 670 shots on their goal last season.
“One shot on your goal should hurt you, 670 is a massive embarrassment and they’ve got to stop that.
“They were so exposed in midfield. They have narrowed the team. Whether it works or not.”
Kobbie Mainoo and Casemiro are anchoring the engine room behind Mason Mount and Bruno Fernandes, with Marcus Rashford and Amad Diallo highest.
But Neville says a tweak in formation to fix a leaky midfield is far from United’s only problem.
He added: “They were a mess everywhere.
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“Injuries were a mess, the balance of the team was a mess, midfield was a mess, the amount of goals they conceded and shots they conceded, they didn’t score goals.
“There was very little right about Manchester United last season at all. The only positive was the FA Cup success.
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“They’ve got to change everything, it’s got to be so much better.”
In May, Ten Hag blamed injuries for his side’s defensive woes.
He told Sky Sports: “I see the stats and it’s clear.
“Last season, we had the consistent back four, we did the same and we had the most clean sheets in the Premier League.
“So when everyone is fit, they can deliver the way we want to defend, but it also has something to do with the possession.
“When you don’t have the players at the back and the patterns, when you don’t have the left-footed players on the left side, you already have to make your adjustments.
“It changes your way of play, but also your possession and when you have less possession, you also have more shots.
“There are some reasons for why this happens, but I don’t think it has anything to do with the way we want to play because that proves it [last season], where we had the most clean sheets in the Premier League.”
New centre-back Leny Yoro has already been ruled out for months is a massive blow.
Noussair Mazraoui started at left-back against Fulham, with Matthijs de Ligt on the bench.
