Man Utd 1-1 Leicester: Five things you may have missed as Fred spares United blushes
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Manchester United’s 1-1 draw with Leicester City on Saturday showed their recurring deficiencies, and why they’re likely to miss out on a top-four spot this season.
The Red Devils lacked urgency, penetration and a clear plan against Brendan Rodgers’s men, who were the better side for the majority of the game at Old Trafford.
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Hide AdIt was Kelechi Iheanacho who netted the opener for Leicester in the second half when he headed home from James Maddison’s excellent cross, but the much-improved Fred equlaised just four minutes later when he pounced on Kasper Schmeichel’s parried save inside the box.
With the game being on TV, many fans will have seen the main talking points, but we’ve selected a few moments which may have passed you by...
How United lined-up
Ralf Rangnick approached the game without a recognised centre-forward as Edinson Cavani is injured and Ronaldo missed the game with ‘flu-like symptoms’.
It means the Red Devils started with a 4-2-2-2 shape at Old Trafford, although, like when it was deployed at the Etihad Stadium last month, it just didn’t work.
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Hide AdIt was Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes who started up front for United and neither could find the pockets of spaces, or manage to stretch Leicester.
Rangnick did bring Marcus Rashford on in the second half, and switched to a 4-2-3-1 shape, but it didn’t result in much more success and shooting opportunities for the hosts.
Maguire responds well
It’s been a difficult few days for Harry Maguire, who was booed by England fans at Wembley on Saturday, and he dominated much of the pre-match coverage.
But the 29-year-old responded well at Old Trafford and put in a solid display against the side he left in 2019 for £80m.
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Hide AdThe Leicester fans clearly haven’t forgiven him for leaving, and Maguire was the subject of repeated boos and negative chants from the away supporters.
While he did receive some backing from the home fans, it wasn’t quite as vehement as could have been expected, and in the second period those chants mainly petered out.
Rashford disappointing display
Rashford’s omission from the starting XI caused much debate before and during the game, especially with United playing without a traditional central striker.
Rashford’s introduction on 55 minutes was enthusiastically cheered by the home fans, but the striker once again disappointed on th pitch.
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Hide AdThe 24-year-old barely got involved during his cameo display, and demonstrated once again why he is not capable of playing through the middle.
Pogba’s painful performance
Another who struggled to impress himself on the game was Pogba. The Frenchman, who looks likely to be approaching the end of his six-year stint with the club, was completely ineffective.
He was ponderous in possession, delayed passes and misplaced too many balls to team-mates. From a positional sense, Pogba also took up some odd spots on the pitch, in areas Leicester would be happy to see United’s No.6.
The former Juventus man was so poor, he was actually replaced in the latter stages for holding midfielder Nemanja Matic. That a creative player was replaced by someone who mainly breaks up the play while the team searched for a winner, is an indictment of Pogba’s disappointing display.
Fletcher’s fiery exchange
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Hide AdDarren Fletcher was never afraid to get stuck in as a player, and it seems that has extended to his coaching career.
The former United midfielder was involved in a verbal altercation from the touchline with a home supporter, after the visitors found the back of the net midway through the second half.
After the pair exchanged words, stewards approached the fan and managed to cool the situation.
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