Wolves 2-1 Manchester United: 5 reasons why the Red Devils lost the game | FA Cup 2018-19

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester United - FA Cup Quarter Final
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester United - FA Cup Quarter Final

#3 Deviating from Counter Attacking tactics

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester United - FA Cup Quarter Final
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester United - FA Cup Quarter Final

Most of the success that Solskjaer achieved in his short tenure at Manchester United was by sticking to a fast, counter-attacking style of play. Against Wolves, Solskjaer had the personnel to play similar football but failed to stick to the plan.

Wolves piled up the numbers in the middle and left spaces open in the wings. The Norwegian could have tweaked his tactics to take advantage of the situation but was slow to react. Wolves regularly came forward in search of a goal and left open spaces for United to exploit.

Sadly, the away side were too slow and took too much time on the ball. This allowed Wolves to get bodies back quickly and the home side was able to close down the gaps.

United’s passing was also poor on the night, as the away side lacked the final ball, which meant that counter attacks fell short due to lack of speed and precision. This ultimately cost them the game.

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