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Manchester United got back to their winning ways with an impressive 2-0 victory over Burnley at Turf Moor. A first-half brace from Romelu Lukaku meant that Jose Mourinho's team had a comfortable cushion to play with in the second half. Marcus Rashford was sent off, whilst Paul Pogba missed a spot-kick in the final forty-five minutes, and here I discuss the five major talking points from the game:
#5 Manchester United mount early pressure; double defensive pivot works:
Ahead of the game, Jose Mourinho said, “We will try [to play attacking football]. We are going to try, you know. It’s a process that has risks especially if you make the defensive mistakes that break that dynamic. The teams that are really, really good offensively are the teams that are very, very solid from the back.”
Sure, there has been an incessant criticism of United’s tactics over the past few weeks, but the fact that the lack of a defensive leader blocks United to maintain discipline at the back is true too. Whenever a manager sniffs vulnerability at the back, addressing that issue becomes of paramount importance and hence United were overloading their box with such players.
However, Victor Lindelof’s shaky demeanour, coupled with Chris Smalling’s knack of committing regular errors meant that United had to provide extra defensive cover to their backline. While Nemanja Matic played as the sole holding midfielder, Marouane Fellaini somewhat operated as a destroyer at the back, often dominating Burnley’s forwards in the air and playing as the deepest non-defensive player.
He won seven aerial duels, and cleared the ball on seven occasions, clearly indicating that the Belgian completed his overall job. Fellaini and Matic rotated their positions, with the Serb playing higher than usual and quite uncharacteristically driving the team ahead from the inner channels too.
The central defenders looked further assured, and it is safe to say that this particular tactical tweak worked out quite well, as United were composed on the back and regularly surged ahead creating havoc in Burnley’s defensive areas.
#4 Burnley losing steam; considerably tough season ahead:
There is no doubt over Sean Dyche’s diligence and the amount of work that he has put in bringing the Clarets into a formidable position in the league. They finished seventh last season and effectively played a part in this season’s qualifications for the Europa League.
Dyche worked on a shoestring budget and still managed to milk out the maximum utilization of the potential from his squad. However, coming into this season, there have been certain glaring doubts over Burnley’s fortunes this time around.
They had developed an ultra-defensive low block setup last time around, and the team’s discipline and efficiency helped them churn out decent results in important matches as such. Moreover, their rivals strengthened their respective squads quite well, and the same could not be said about Dyche’s men. Dyche’s philosophy relies a lot on concentration, diligence and being clinical in attack.
However, it is difficult to maintain consistency in these aspects if a team runs out of energy or motivation to do so. Dyche’s methods must have been impressive, but with time, it appears to have a one-dimensional side to it.
They need to instil some innovation, something unique in their attacking gameplay, otherwise, it wouldn’t be difficult for the oppositions to figure out their deficiencies and attack the Clarets accordingly. As of now, despite being knocked out of the Europa League, they might face a stiff season ahead.
#3 The Real Drama Unfolds in the Second Half:
United went into the dugout with a cushion of two goals’ lead, courtesy of an impressive brace by Romelu Lukaku. The Belgian hammered home a thumping header in the first half and scored from close range at the brink of halftime too.
Both of these goals were pretty important, and United did not seem to lower the intensity or lose the momentum even in the second portion of the game. This was until Alexis Sanchez was taken off for Marcus Rashford at the hour mark. The Chilean had worked his socks off; regularly pressing high up on the pitch and tracking back to revive the possession back.
Sanchez provided a sumptuous cross for Lukaku too and was quite threatening with his movement and clever one-twos with Jesse Lingard in the earlier stage of the match. However, the former Arsenal man had returned from an injury, and it was necessary to preserve him, also because of the amount of work-rate that he did during his stay on the pitch.
Rashford earned a penalty, which Paul Pogba stepped up to take. The Frenchman is United’s designated penalty-taker, but it is notable to observe that Lukaku was on a hat-trick at that point of time, and it would have only been fair from the Frenchman’s part to let the Belgian score from the spot-kick. More importantly, Pogba failed to score from his spot-kick, and that injected a session of panic on the field.
Rashford was sent off for an atrocious head-butt on Bardsley, and Lukaku missed a sitter after dribbling past Joe Hart. He couldn’t score from an open goal and missed an opportunity to complete his first hat-trick for United.
Moreover, Rashford’s incidence was more glaring as such, as the lad should have maintained his composure, but he now faces three matches on the sidelines.
#2 Burnley play all of their cards, but to no avail:
Last season, Burnley dismantled their opposition with well-timed long balls over the midfield lines. Their squad has physically dominated, aerially strong and clinical forwards, who help Dyche carry out this plan to perfection.
However, as stated in the second point, there is a certain predictability and one-dimensional aspect in their gameplay, which could be neutralized by the opposition. Jose Mourinho asked Fellaini to play as the deepest-lying midfielder, and the Belgian was tasked with marking Chris Wood and laying down second balls for Matic and Pogba using his aerial prowess.
The presence of Fellaini as the midfield enforcer helped United to chop off Burnley’s primary attacking plan, and then Dyche resorted to using his substitutes in order to allow them to pave a way back in the game. Sam Vokes and Ashley Barnes came in the second half, but despite being a man down, United arranged them to perfection in order to avoid any hiccups late into the game.
The backline was well sorted, as Ander Herrera was brought in to provide further cover and generally to provide some leadership to a team that tends to panic during such dire situations.
Vokes and Barnes were Burnley’s standout performers last season, but their inability to crack a United team with 10 men just further emphasizes on the point that Burnley might need some modification to tackle different scenarios throughout the course of the season.
#1. Is Jose Mourinho trying to prove something?
It isn’t difficult to figure out that there is a rift between Mourinho and Ed Woodward. The manager is understandably unsatisfied with the club’s transfer activity, and Woodward’s inability to land an experienced centre-back. In fact, the clear difference between United and Spurs in their game last season was the presence of Toby Alderweireld, who single-handedly led the Tottenham’s backline; much in contrast with United’s backline which crumbled under pressure after the first goal.
Nevertheless, there has been a remarkable in the style of play too, and it is definitely not a coincidence that Mourinho is looking to tweak tactics that could offer enthrallment and effective results too. The Portuguese had failed to instil a consistent playing pattern, but after seeing his position in doubt after a poor start to the season, Mourinho seems intent on making a statement.
The defeat against Spurs was a dent to the team’s confidence, but the confidence, passion and the intent with which United’s players played that day was remarkable. Similarly, there was an interesting dynamism in United’s gameplay today, and an improvement in the overall cohesion of the team too.
Sanchez, Luke Shaw and Pogba seemed to combine well together, especially the Chilean who was a livewire from the left flank. The team had gelled brilliantly on the field, and this could certainly put bed to the rumours of the manager losing control over the dressing room.
Another interesting occurrence has been Mourinho’s insistence on bringing the fans on his side in his battle against the board. The former Porto boss certainly has the fans’ back currently, and with an improved style of play, they surely would support him until the end. In his previous stints with Real Madrid and Chelsea, Mourinho lost the fans’ backing towards the end of the tenure.
However, United’s fans are relatively more patient, and tend to support their manager through the thick and the thin. Eager to gain their confidence, Mourinho has been engaging in certain gestures that one would normally not associate with him.
After the Tottenham defeat, he went to the home stand and applauded the supporters for two minutes, a gesture for having cheered the lads until the final whistle blew. When he went to watch United’s U-23 take on Stoke City’s U-23 team at Old Trafford a couple of days ago, Mourinho spent some time with fans from the disabled section. Tonight, whilst crossing the field, he again went towards the away stand and expressed his positive emotions by handing over a couple of items to some fans.
With small acts like these, Mourinho will undoubtedly earn the trust of the Old Trafford faithful, something that can help him buy some time to pursue success at Manchester United too. Until then, chants singing ‘Mourinho’s Red Army’ are going to be sung loud and clear throughout the ground.
