Manchester United struggles are cause for concern

Sure, we’ve been right here earlier than. It was the start of final season that Manchester United began like ass, obtained totally thwacked by Brighton, supervisor Erik Ten Hag made them run just a few extra miles in coaching, after which it was fantastic for some time. It was largely fantastic as a result of Marcus Rashford changed into the Human Torch, and Casemiro arrived and rolled again the years. Nicely, a kind of issues continues to be occurring, however thus far it hasn’t been sufficient this season.

United as soon as once more obtained paddled by Brighton at residence, happening, 3-0, on three vicious moves by the Seagulls earlier than getting a late comfort. Certain, the match might need been totally different had Rasmus Højlund’s equalizer at 0-1 counted as an alternative of being dominated out by VAR due to it rolling an inch or two over the endline. However a staff like United isn’t presupposed to collapse over one second. Even when they’ve been doing precisely that for a few years now.

No matter facet that United supporters need to get apprehensive about can be appropriate. Their assault on Saturday was extremely Rashford-dependent once more. United had 14 photographs complete. Rashford had 9 of them. He didn’t rating on any, which United badly want. Christian Eriksen seemed nice final season with an all-action Casemiro subsequent to him. United don’t have an all-action Casemiro in the intervening time, and Eriksen created precisely no probabilities on Saturday.

Casemiro is one other downside. Right here’s what some folks consider his season thus far:

Casemiro was nowhere on Brighton’s first two targets as they stormed by way of United’s midfield and into their field. You may see him huffing and puffing behind Welbeck each in midfield after which within the field because the cross to Welbeck goes proper by him:

Perhaps Sofyan Amrabat helps with this when he’s up to the mark. Perhaps that extra strong basis, ought to it occur, enlivens Eriksen and Fernandes once more.

There’s additionally some query about why Ten Hag spent the week main as much as the Brighton match choosing a battle with Jadon Sancho. In case you missed it, after the Arsenal loss, Ten Hag determined to air out Sancho within the press about his efficiency in coaching. Sancho didn’t take kindly to it, ended up arguing with Ten Hag in particular person and thru the press, and is now coaching by himself. This was proper after United misplaced one other wide-attacking participant in Antony, who might be a hunk of abusive garbage and on his option to jail (contagious at United, it appears). Did United actually need this? With out each of them, United reverted to a 4-3-2-1, which Brighton discovered no downside chopping proper by way of as Scott McTominay, Casemiro, and Eriksen all tried to determine the place they had been presupposed to be.

It’s nonetheless solely 5 video games in, and Ten Hag has turned this ship round earlier than. Nonetheless, the metrics from final yr urged they had been type of fortunate to complete third, particularly as their xGA was a lot larger than the precise targets they let up. The eight they’ve let within the earlier three matches may recommend that market correction is coming within the type of a baseball bat to the again of the cranium.

The upcoming fixtures are a bit kinder, however Brentford and Palace are able to biting anybody on their day, and Brentford have made a behavior out of constructing United look awfully foolish. Perhaps Rashford will begin scoring each recreation as he did final yr. It appears to be United’s solely answer.

What else went down in Spherical 5?

4. That is all Man Metropolis want

Y’know, I used to be simply considering that the one factor Manchester Metropolis might use is a devastating one-on-one winger who can dribble his manner proper into the penalty space every time he rattling pleases. Wouldn’t it’s nice for everybody if that they had that type of toy? Simply nice, right here’s Jérémy Doku.

Doku was mainly unplayable in opposition to West Ham, and proper again Vladimir Coufal can be seeing individuals who aren’t there for just a few weeks after this one. Doku had two photographs on track, created three probabilities, had 0.68 price of anticipated assists, whereas terrorizing the West Ham protection. Whereas when Jack Grealish performs on the left of Metropolis’s assault, you understand precisely what you’re getting (and it’s fairly good). Doku felt like he might go anyplace and do something on Saturday. It’s a brand new development for Metropolis, who appear to be specializing in carrying the ball extra reasonably than simply passing groups to dying. Thus far this season, Metropolis have averaged 30.0 progressive carries per match. It was 26 final yr. They nonetheless can move and move and move, however they’ll dance round a blockade now in the event that they must.

Whether or not Doku grabs an everyday position or simply adjustments video games from the bench, Pep has a brand new software to deploy that protection should clear up together with all the opposite ones Guardiola has discovered this season, comparable to Julian Alvarez as a #10 or Phil Foden operating all over the place or Kyle Walker as a straight proper winger and likewise a fullback on the similar time. Some guys have all of it.

3. Alisson is perhaps turning into the boogeyman for opposing strikers

Liverpool are off to a flying, though extraordinarily bizarre begin. It’s straightforward to determine after they’ve been horrible this season. They had been terrible within the first half in opposition to Bournemouth, Newcastle, and Wolves. They gained all three video games. How lengthy this development can proceed is anybody’s guess, although with the array of attacking expertise the Reds have, a comeback is at all times a risk.

A few of that is because of the brilliance of Alisson, who definitely saved them in video games in opposition to Newcastle and Bournemouth when it might need gotten away from them. Alisson was the one purpose Liverpool even hinted at crashing the highest 4 final yr, saving some 9 targets from anticipated, the very best mark within the league.

This season, it looks like strikers are already spooked by Alisson earlier than they even shoot. Liverpool have given up 5.9 xGA in 5 matches this season. However the post-shot xGA, which accounts for the place the shot is positioned and never simply the place it’s taken from, is simply 4.3. Final season, the post-shot xGA for Liverpool was larger than their merely xGA, which meant Alisson needed to be immense. This season, he’s needed to do much less work thus far as a result of attackers are making their probabilities worse than they need to. Y’know, like this:

This was one thing of a staple of Liverpool’s title-winning season, when Alisson turned each striker into Mr. Invoice after they obtained into the field. Or it was simply common voodoo. Both manner, it’s helped Liverpool dodge some critical harm from their rising pains as they try to retrofit a whole midfield.

2. Arsenal admit what corners ought to be

There was a e-book not so way back, Soccernomics, that urged that each one the maths stated that groups ought to simply take all their corners quick and begin an assault from there as an alternative of sending in cross after cross. That getting the ball close to the endline and nobody inside 10 yards was extra advantageous.

Definitely, Arsenal thought so, as a Sean Dyche staff is at all times constructed with a number of frost giants in protection and most crosses are going to be swatted away simply. So Arsenal took a special method:

When serious about Arsenal’s lineup, it’s not precisely rife with tall gamers. So this was the wise method. It was additionally a spotlight of Fabio Viera’s efficiency, who was introduced into change the wayward Kai Havertz. It obtained misplaced within the shuffle of Mikel Arteta additionally altering goalkeepers, and possibly that was intentional. Viera didn’t handle to place any of his 4 photographs on web, although he was denied an help within the first half by a marginal VAR offside name. He was definitely extra energetic than Havertz has been, and didn’t cover as Havertz has achieved at occasions. This can be one thing price watching over the approaching weeks.

1. Is that this the very best purpose ever scored by an MLS export?

Jhon Duran moved from the Chicago Hearth to Aston Villa in January. He managed a pair sub appearances each final season and this. It’ll be laborious to interrupt up the Ollie Watkins-Moussa Diaby axis up entrance, however doing this once in a while will at the least give supervisor Unai Emery one thing to consider:

And I used to be the one who thought he ought to have stayed in Chicago for another season to tear up MLS and drive up his worth and wage. I’m good at stuff.

Observe Sam on Twitter @Felsgate and on Bluesky @felsgate.bsky.social