Former defender Rio Ferdinand criticized the quality of Man Utd's defense in the 2-3 loss to Galatasaray in the second round of Group C of the Champions League.
"The opponent cut Man Utd like a knife through butter," Ferdinand said about Galatasaray scoring three goals at Old Trafford on the evening of October 3. "It was a shame. Man Utd have many experienced players, but they don't know how to organize their defense."
Ferdinand also believes that if there had been a real defensive leader, Man Utd would not have conceded two of the three goals. He implicitly criticised the two centre-backs who played the whole match, Raphael Varane and Victor Lindelof. "I'm not talking about young players, I'm talking about experienced players who know how to move and have won many titles," Ferdinand said. "The team needs someone to organise the defence, whether it's the goalkeeper or the centre-back."
Icardi (left) celebrates scoring the winning goal for Galatasaray in the away match against Man Utd on the evening of October 3. Photo: AFP
In the match on the evening of October 3, Man Utd started well and opened the scoring in the 17th minute thanks to a header from new signing Rasmus Hojlund. However, it only took Galatasaray six minutes to equalize. After a high pass into the Man Utd penalty area, Wilfried Zaha's shot hit Dalot's foot, causing the ball to change direction and fly over goalkeeper Andre Onana's head.
The two teams continued to chase each other in the second half. After Hojlund broke through and scored to make it 2-1 in the 67th minute, Galatasaray took just four minutes to equalize. The Man Utd defense completely forgot about Akturkoglu, allowing the other team's player to rush into the penalty area and shoot diagonally into Onana's net.
At the end of the match, Man Utd collapsed due to individual mistakes. After Onana's wrong pass in the 77th minute, Casemiro had to commit a foul in the penalty area and received a red card. Mauro Icardi missed the penalty, but Galatasaray still had plenty of time to take advantage of the man advantage. In the 81st minute, after Sofyan Amrabat's offside mistake, Icardi chipped the ball over Onana's head, sealing a 3-2 victory.
According to Ferdinand, Man Utd players need to remember that they are playing at the highest level. Therefore, he advised them to avoid making mistakes like in other tournaments.
Ferdinand was also delighted with Hojlund, the striker United have just signed from Atalanta, scoring twice. However, after the Turkish side came from behind to win, he could not keep his composure. "Tonight I was on a rollercoaster," Ferdinand added. "At one point I felt something positive and potential at United, but then I realised the team was completely disorganised."
Man Utd lost to Galatasaray without Lisandro Martinez. The Argentine centre-back is out until the end of 2023 due to a recurrence of injury. Left-backs Luke Shaw, Tyrell Malacia and Sergio Reguilon are also out due to injury, while coach Erik Ten Hag does not have faith in Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans.
This was Man Utd's sixth defeat in ten matches in all competitions since the start of the 2023-2024 season. Previously, Ten Hag's team lost to Tottenham, Arsenal, Brighton, Crystal Palace in the Premier League and Bayern in the first round of the Champions League group stage.
Man Utd are bottom of Group A of the Champions League, with zero points after two games. Bayern lead with two wins from two, while Galatasaray are second with four points and Copenhagen are third with one point. If they fail to beat Copenhagen in their next two games, Man Utd will likely be eliminated from the tournament in the group stage.
Midfielder Christian Eriksen said the team were disappointed after the Galatasaray game, and they barely spoke to each other in the dressing room. He believes Man Utd's problem is not confidence, but sharpness, luck and avoiding mistakes. "It's just the beginning," Eriksen added. "We need to win the remaining games to qualify."
Thanh Quy (according to BT Sport )
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