Home » Victor Lindelof and Raphael Varane keep Brentford at arm’s length

Victor Lindelof and Raphael Varane keep Brentford at arm’s length

by Marwan Harraz

Manchester United boss Ralf Rangnick will be happy with his selection of the team that defeated Brentford away from home.

The German boss oversaw a 3-1 victory that could have easily gone wrong in a first-half fraught with defensive errors.

UtdArena tweeted: “Raphaël Varane (9/10) and Victor Lindelöf (6/7) won 15/17 aerial duels today and made an additional six headed clearances on top of that.”

However, United bounced back and in the second half scored three goals from three different academy products in Anthony Elanga, Mason Greenwood, and Marcus Rashford.

It was a brilliant response from the players and perhaps it wouldn’t have happened had it not been for Raphael Varane, Victor Lindelof, and David de Gea.

Harry Maguire may be the captain of the club and so normally, by default in some ways, is the first name on the teamsheet.

However, Rangnick stuck to his guns by allowing Varane and Lindelof to continue their partnership together.

The duo have impressed in the absence of Maguire due to injury and so it made sense to reward them despite his return.

The former Leicester City man ended up coming onto the field regardless as Rangnick opted to switch to a back three.

Interestingly enough, Maguire was on the pitch but Bruno Fernandes kept the captain’s armband and although too much can’t be read into it, it could be a sign of what’s to come.

Reports emerged before the match claiming Rangnick feel the Englishman isn’t good enough to be a starter for Manchester United, along with Luke Shaw and Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

It remains to be seen if Maguire can earn his spot back but the stats above show it’s worth sticking with Lindelof and Varane for now.

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