Captain Fantastic: How Lallana Produced A Creative Masterclass At Old Trafford

While the BBC did their best to persuade us all that Manchester United huffed and puffed at a resilient Southampton side during Match of the Day on Saturday, if you had witnessed the game, or even had a glance at the statistics, you would have seen that it wasn’t the case. Mauricio Pochettino set his side up to do a job at Old Trafford this weekend and they executed it almost to perfection. The Hampshire side bossed the under pressure-champions for much of the tie and forced United into making a hefty 51 clearances – 30 more than Saints themselves.

Southampton also looked the sharper in the attacking areas of the field despite scrambling an equaliser just before the full time whistle to snatch a point. They produced 18 shots at goal during the game, seven of which were on target, while United managed just 12 in total.

Pochettino has instilled a steely determination into his side since his arrival last season and has his players making life difficult for the opposition by pressing in numbers and winning possession high up the pitch. Southampton (22) made six more tackles than United (16) and also completed 41 more passes than the home side.

Southampton Tackles Won v Man United

Southampton shocked some when they climbed into the top-four the weekend before last, but the togetherness of the squad and the tactics from the man at the helm has made them an incredibly hard team to break down. There was one man at the centre of that on Saturday, and that was the man who was credited with a dubious looking goal – Adam Lallana.

The 25-year-old has hero status at St Marys and his performances this season suggest why. Not only is it his bond with the club that the supporters hail him for, but he is the man that makes his side tick.

He was rightly awarded with our Squawka Man of the Match for his display against United and his performance was crowned with a goal – although, as touched upon, the final touch in the goalmouth scramble has been argued.

The 25-year-old was deployed on the right side of Southampton’s 4-2-3-1 and he improved as the game went on. Although his crossing failed to warrant any real panic from the United defenders, his ability to cut inside certainly did. Lallana’s four shots all came from central areas, and three of his five key passes (he made more passes than any player for either side) came from little pockets of space that he created himself in and around the edge of the 18-yard box.

Adam Lallana Key Passes v Man United

David Moyes’ central pairing of Marouane Fellaini and Michael Carrick were unable to contain Lallana, as he beat them both with his take-ons, as you can see by the graphic below. Speed isn’t Lallana’s greatest asset, but his energy levels proved too much for the static United pairing for large portions of the game, and when the likes of Victor Wanyama tired, the legs of Lallana provided cover.

Adam Lallana Take-Ons v Southampton

While Lallana and his team-mates will be savouring the performance they dished out at Old Trafford – a performance which saw the visitors outfight, out pass and ultimately out play the current Premier League champions – they will be frustrated that they couldn’t sink the wobbling United ship.