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It was another evening to forget for Manchester United as they slumped to a humiliating 3-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford.
Having conceded in the third minute, it was a nightmare start to the match for Man United, with Bruno Fernandes’ red card before half-time only making life harder for Erik ten Hag’s team.
Making the most of their numerical advantage, Spurs took a colossal 24 shots, with United managing 11 of their own. Understandably, the visitors’ attacking resolve made life difficult for United goalkeeper Andre Onana.
Following the opening goal, Onana was called into action when Maddison slipped past United’s back four into the box. Fortunately, Onana spotted the threat, making a brave save from up close.
Before the break, Timo Werner was on a rapid counter; however, it was United’s keeper who came to the rescue yet again, making a superb leg save.
In the second half, the Cameroonian shot-stopper saved United yet again, blocking a close-range effort by Dominic Solanke, who breezed past the defence.
Throughout the match, Onana made a total of seven saves, proof of the enormous amount of work he had to take on due to his teammates’ shambolic performance.
Aside from his goalkeeping efforts, Onana also made one clearance.
Onana struggled with the ball at his feet, completing just 54% of his passes (15/28). Still, this was largely due to Erik ten Hag’s tactic of playing out from the back, which the Spurs attackers were clearly prepared for.
As a result of Spurs’ high press, the goalkeeper lost possession on 14 occasions.
He was no more effective when it came to long balls, with just six of his 19 attempted long passes finding their target.
Ultimately, Onana produced some great saves and showed great positioning. In fact, without him, one could only wonder how much worse the final score would have been. Still, this performance serves as evidence that the United keeper cannot be expected to keep out the opposition without the assistance of his defenders, who quite clearly failed to live up to expectations.
(Stats via Sofascore)
Feature image Carl Recine via Getty Images
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