Manchester United put in arguably one of their worst first-half displays this season, succumbing to a 1-2 defeat at the hands of fierce rivals Leeds United at Old Trafford on Monday.
This was United’s first defeat at home under Michael Carrick, and Leeds’ first win at the Theatre of Dreams since 1988.
The home side looked like a team that has not played in 24 days and the rustiness was on display right from kick-off.
That was best exemplified by Leny Yoro, who looked completely lost out there for the entirety of the 90 minutes.
Yoro was dismal, United looked rusty
The visitors looked much sharper, having qualified for the FA Cup semi-finals last week, and deservedly took a two-goal lead within 30 minutes.
Things went from bad to worse in the second half when Lisandro Martinez was shown a straight red card for violent conduct.
The Argentine was spotted pulling Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s hair, and after VAR intervention, the World Cup winner was shown his marching orders. It was harsh, but as per the rulebook, it seemed to be the right call.
Credit to the hosts for not giving up despite being two goals down and a man down, as they upped the ante and Casemiro reduced the deficit from a Bruno Fernandes cross.
Better when down to 10 men
The Red Devils came close to equalising multiple times, but some last-ditch defending and great goalkeeping meant Leeds took home all three points.
Carrick, who has rightly received plaudits for United’s turnaround post the disastrous Ruben Amorim era, got his team selection and tactics all wrong on the night.
Playing Manuel Ugarte in midfield was the wrong call, with the Uruguayan sloppy on the ball. Starting Lisandro Martinez straight away after his injury proved to be another disastrous decision.
Both centre-backs were at sixes and sevens all night, but the Argentine is starting to become a liability.
Lisandro Martinez really poor
At least Yoro has age on his side, but the 28-year-old should have taken on more responsibility as one of the leaders within the squad.
Suffering from frequent injuries, the former Ajax ace has missed over 100 games since joining, which makes it difficult for the head coach to place their trust in him despite his qualities.
He also remains prone to losing his head in the heat of the moment, United need someone more dependable than Lisandro Martinez at the moment.
On the ball, there are few better but his temperament cost his team against Leeds. While most fans had been thinking midfield was the area that needed the most urgent attention, INEOS have a tough call to make in the summer with regard to recruiting at the back as well.
Feature image Carl Recine via Getty Images
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