Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho is claimed to have made several mistakes when facing Liverpool at Anfield Stadium on Sunday (16/12).
There are some decisions that are considered strange from Mourinho in the 17th week of the English Premier League match. The Red Devils also suffered a 1-3 defeat from the hosts thanks to goals from Sadio Mane and an additional two goals from Xherdan Shaqiri. One goal from Man United was scored by Jesse Lingard.
Here’s the mistakes of Jose Mourinho in the match against Liverpool quoted from Sportskeeda:
1. Formation
Jose Mourinho chose the 5-3-2 formation to face Liverpool, hoping to rely on the speed of the three players ahead. Unfortunately with the scheme Man United lost the battle in midfield. Two Man United midfielders, Ander Herrera and Nemanja Matic could not compete with trio Giorginio Wijnaldum, Fabinho and Naby keita.
On the other hand Herrera is too burdened in maintaining a balance in defense and attack. The reason, Matic too down to the crater to help defense. If it wasn’t for Eric Bailly’s alertness, goalkeeper David de Gea could concede more than three goals. In the second half, Mourinho changed the scheme to 4-3-3 but that didn’t help the Red Devils much.
2. Selecting Players
There was no Juan Mata and Paul Pogba name in Man United’s starter arrangement against Liverpool. Even though the two players were the best feeders owned by Jose Mourinho. Against a team like Liverpool that has a good intensity of attack, Mourinho needs both. Reserve Mata and Pogba were considered Mourinho’s mistakes in the match.
Eyes will be a great addition to the team. If not played as a playmaker, Mata can be placed as the right wing. Because Mata’s pass at Liverpool’s defense are believed to be able to make a difference in attack for Man United.
3. Substitution of Players
Mourinho’s mistake continues to change players in the middle of the game. The former Real Madrid coach pulled out Diogo Dalot by including Marouane Fellaini in the 46th minute, hoping to maintain the stability of the team. But in reality it had no effect on the team’s performance, Liverpool remained free to pressure Man United in the second round.
In the 79th minute Ander Herrera came out and Anthony Martial entered. Herrera’s exit made man United lose his strength. Man United conceded again, and Martial had little time to effect the Red Devils. The entry of Mata in the 85th minute also did not mean much for the visitors’ attack.
4. Play Tactics
Man United’s midfield did not pressure Liverpool. Matic went down too deep to make the midfield sector lack the strength to compete for the opposing midfield. Diogo Dalot who is a right wingback cannot play his role well, so Herrera often has to help the right sector by leaving a hole in the middle.
The gap was finally used by the Liverpool midfielders to master the game. Fabinho was so free to dictate the game. The visitors finally did not have the choice to play the pass directly from front to back because of the distance between players. Such tactics make Man United quickly lose the ball, while Liverpool continue to master the game.
