Manchester United were held to a 4-4 draw by Bournemouth on Monday night in a frenetic game at Old Trafford that exposed the sloppiness of Ruben Amorim’s side.
Ruben Amorim was the calmest man in the volcanic Old Trafford as Matheus Cunha restored his team’s lead in an exhilarating late game.
In fact, he seemed a little lost in thought for a moment. Perhaps he knew what was going to happen. Perhaps he knew his team was one that could always find new ways to not win football games.
They did their duty on this score and Amorim, who conceded a point to Bourmas to Junior Crupi, will be under new pressure. In fact, Amorim was grateful for a late save from Senne Ramens to avoid a humiliating defeat.
It was a real blow for United. This is because, with a reduced schedule and a significantly reduced squad size, there is no excuse for not being able to play to the best of your ability in every Premier League game.
This, combined with the declining standard of the competition overall, is why top four places are now the only chance to win. Anything less should not be accepted.
read more: Manchester United hold Bournemouth thriller as obvious problem for Ruben Amorim – 5 talking pointsread more: Rio Ferdinand issues immediate transfer request to Man United following Bournemouth’s dramatic draw
The intensity, power and urgency shown in the first half of this contest should be the norm for the rest of the season. Amorim also has the resources to deal with the absence of Brian Mbeumo and Diallo, who are in the African Cup of Nations alongside Nouser Mazraoui.
That’s not to say United won’t overlook their contributions. Diallo nodded in from centimeters after Diogo Dalot’s cross caused chaos, but it was his simplest task.
Apart from that, his quick-footed schemes were a constant threat to a Bournemouth side that seemed a little taken aback by United’s fast-paced directness.
The home team had more than a dozen shots on target before the visitors found the back of the net. Let me tell you, Marcus Tavernier should have buried his header instead of sending it straight to the Rammen. And one of the fundamental problems with this United team is that they tend to concede too many decent chances.
In fact, Andoni Iraola’s side could have easily gone ahead after Antoine Semenho’s deft equaliser, but instead some poor goalkeeping from Djordje Petrovic allowed Casemiro to score a legitimate header to restore United’s lead.
However, that tendency to create chances for opponents was soon back in evidence, with a smart but simple pass from Tavernier setting up Evanilsson’s smart finish within a minute of the start of the second half.
The inconsistency of this United side, and we’re talking about inconsistency within a single match, is truly astonishing. The first half was lively, but the second half was dry.
After a sloppy pass from Bruno Fernandes, Tavernier ran half the length of the field and was found by Casemiro. Then, when Tavernier took a free-kick, the finely constructed defensive wall collapsed and what had been one of United’s best performances of the season was suddenly delayed an hour before the game.
However, this was a Bournemouth team that had picked up just one point in their last five games. Tensions then surfaced and United were back in the lead. First Bruno Fernandes curled in a beautiful free-kick, then Matheus Cunha happily tucked in United’s fourth goal.
But this was just United’s side, finding new ways to keep the line under control and Crupi brilliantly scoring the final equalizer of a stunning night.
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