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Manchester United traveled to the Molineux Stadium with more than just revenge on their minds. Tottenham's defeat at the hands of Liverpool had opened up the top four race. Solskjaer knew that even third place was achievable now. United started the night at 5th and had the chance to temporarily move up to third with all three points.
But Wolves were no pushovers, especially since they had convincingly defeated United in the FA Cup quarterfinal last month. Solskjaer could not afford any more slip-ups now and set his team up accordingly.
He started with De Gea in goal, and Dalot, Young, Smalling, Lindelof and Shaw making up the back five. In the midfield, he opted for McTominay and Fred to assist Pogba, whereas up front, Lukaku and Lingard started in attack.
United started the game well and were rewarded when Scott McTominay scored the opening goal in the 13th minute. However, Wolves retaliated through Diogo Jota and were level in the 25th minute.
In the second half, Ashley Young picked up two yellow cards in quick succession and got his marching orders. A Chris Smalling own goal in the 77th minute gave Wolves all three points.
On that note, we take a look at 5 men who were extremely poor for Manchester United on the night.
Also see : Womens World Cup Bracket, Copa America Standings, Gold Cup Standings
#5 Romelu Lukaku
The Belgian had a great chance to stake a claim for a first-team spot, after Solskjaer decided to start with him as the main striker. With Rashford given a rest and Martial only on the bench, Lukaku had a rare opportunity to lead the line as the central striker for Manchester United. And early in the first half, he had a fantastic chance to start the game with a bang.
Diogo Dalot sent in a perfect cross from the right and Lukaku rose to meet it with brute force from close range. He aimed it straight at the goalkeeper though and Patricio hardly had to move to make the save. It was a sign of things to come as the Belgian had a day to forget on the field.
Lukaku did drift to the sides to try and impact the game, but he was extremely poor and missed a few more opportunities that cost United the game.
#4 Chris Smalling
The Englishman has looked good of late and got his preferred partner, Victor Lindelof back for the game. He started in a back five, but looked nervous right from the beginning of the game. Against the speed and trickery of the Wolves frontmen, Smalling was hardly a dominant force in the back for United.
Every time Wolves came knocking, the United defense looked like conceding. This was because Smalling failed to close down the Wolves forwards and left a lot of open spaces in the back. He was culpable for the first goal, when he failed to track Jota’s run from outside the box and instead tried to close down Jimenez even though Lindelof was stationed to do the job.
After Young got his marching orders, Smalling failed to gather his team around and marshal his defense. United’s defending in set pieces was especially poor and Smalling ended the game with an own goal to his name.
#3 Jesse Lingard
The Englishman started as Lukaku’s striker partner on the night, but did very little to justify his selection. Lingard got into good spaces, received the balls in dangerous areas and then wasted them on most occasions. He was lethargic in the box, appeared one dimensional throughout the game and was very poor with his back to goal.
He had a glorious opportunity to double United’s lead in the first half, when Lukaku sent in a perfectly weighted ball to him. Lingard had all the time in the world and no Wolves defender around him. However, the Englishman could only attempt a meek header straight at Patricio, when he should have scored.
As the game wore on, the Englishman looked more and more lost. His first touch was surprisingly poor and he gave away the ball too many times. On a night when United needed urgency and precision in front of goal, Lingard was one of the poorest players on the pitch.
#2 Ashley Young
The skipper started as one of the 3 center backs in a back 5 for Manchester United. Right from the start of the game, Young looked uncomfortable and failed to build a strong partnership with Diogo Dalot. The two of them often ran into the same position, leaving open spaces in the defense for Wolves to run into.
Young struggled to cope with the pace and trickery of Diogo Jota, who had a field day on the left flank. In the 25th minute, after Fred had lost the ball, Young tried to play Jota offside, instead of tracking his run. It did not work and Wolves came back into the game and grew in confidence.
The United skipper then made two unforced errors on the field which ultimately cost United all three points. First, he fouled Jota to earn a yellow card in the 52nd minute. 5 minutes later, he slid in again and sent Jota tumbling to the ground. It was his second yellow on the night, and he got his marching orders. United were a man down and finally succumbed to a defeat.
#1 Fred
The Brazilian was selected to start as the deep-lying midfielder, ahead of Matic who was rested for the game. It was a position that Fred was not too familiar with, but he actually started the game pretty well. The Brazilian looked assured, moved the ball around well and also carried out his defensive duties. However, things soon fell out of place for him.
In the 25th minute, Fred received a pass from De Gea, a few yards away from his own box, but mis-controlled the ball. The Wolves midfield was on his case in a flash and took advantage of some lax defending to score through Diogo Jota. It hurt the midfielder’s confidence and Fred never took control again.
The Brazilian looked nervous and continuously lost the ball until he became a liability for the team. He was ultimately substituted in the 65th minute.
