Man Utd fail to threaten Forest and reverse out of another turning point…
Manchester United followed a positive 45 minutes against Villa with yet another wretched, insipid performance at Nottingham Forest. Of course they did. This is what they do…
“I don’t want to talk about turning points,” said Bruno Fernandes before kick-off. Then to reinforce the captain’s point, Manchester United spent the subsequent 100 minutes killing the conversation entirely.
After an exhilarating second half against Aston Villa on Boxing Day, to the surprise of precisely no one, United reverted to type at Nottingham Forest. Meek, sloppy, disjointed through the first two thirds and even more hopeless in the final one. Once more, there was not a single redeeming feature in their performance.
They were not helped that the primary reason for their Christmas cheer, Rasmus Hojlund, was absent for the trip to the City Ground. Just as we all waited to see if the £72million striker could go on a run after finally breaking his Premier League duck, Hojlund was laid low with illness.
If the Dane was watching from his sick bed, he could be forgiven for thinking he was in the best place. His replacement, Marcus Rashford was forced to feed on slop. Scraps were too much for this United attack to muster.
Hojlund’s absence forced Ten Hag to revert to an attacking line up we all know doesn’t work. Rashford through the middle, either side of two wingers perpetually drawn inside towards the centre-forward. Alejandro Garnacho, scintillating on the right against Villa, was repositioned back to the left so that Antony could pose questions on the right. Those being: Eight-two-f******-million? And: who the f*** sanctioned that?
That trio, supported by Fernandes and Christian Eriksen mustered not a single touch in the box for their centre-forward in the first half and one solitary effort on goal, a 20-yarder from Aaron Wan-Bissaka that had the sting taken out of it and might not have reached the goalline had Matt Turner not picked it up.
Turner did his best to lift United. After Forest took the lead, deserved because of their hustle if not their quality, United continued to flinging s*** at the Forest wall. They only looked a threat when the Forest goalkeeper had the ball at his feet.
Wonder what odds you’d have got for Luton to have scored more Premier League goals than Man United by New Years Day. Having also played one less game than Man United.
— Adam Crafton (@AdamCrafton_) December 30, 2023
In the modern game, where keepers moonlight as playmakers, Turner appears a throwback to the days you wouldn’t trust your gloveman to pass water. Twice in the first five minutes and at least five times overall, the USA stopper looked cringingly uncomfortable in possession. Fair play to him for sticking with Nuno’s instruction to pass through the press, but if that’s how Forest intend to play, the new manager will need to look through his goalkeeping options for someone with the right skillset.
Gary Neville went in two-footed on ‘useless’ Turner – he’s ‘a disgrace’, apparently – after the Forest stopper gifted possession to Garnacho to tee-up Rashford for his first touch in the penalty area, a tidy finish past a keeper already regretting his life choices. And it seemed United might rally once more.
Indeed, they went close through Eriksen’s drive at the edge of the box but Turner’s palms were more reliable than his instep. Forest promptly broke on a United side separated into defence and attack and, through Morgan Gibbs-White, scored a similar goal to that that Nicolas Dominguez had already netted.
Forest saw out the remaining eight minutes and 10 more that were added as easily as we might expect them to against this impossible-to-like United. Ten Hag cut a sorry figure on the sideline watching a side he must be sick of from in front of a bench that offered little option to improve it.
Still, here comes January. And the opportunity to strengthen his attack. Maybe with a Weghorst or an Ighalo, if he’s lucky. Even if FFP restrictions weren’t squeezing United and they could afford to spend on the striker they so badly need, any deal would have to pass more suits than a Moss Bros. Dave Brailsford was once again in attendance, behind John Murtough, literally if not metaphorically.
For Brailsford and Sir Jim Ratcliffe, laid bare yet again is the scale of the job if they really do intend to ‘take Manchester United back to where it belongs, at the very top of English, European and world football’. For that, they will have to take a wrecking ball to this squad before they worry about demolishing Old Trafford.
Read next: Sir Jim Ratcliffe beware! Seven Man Utd failings highlighted by inside report
