Manchester United lost 0-1 to Wolverhampton Wanderers in a Premier League match at Old Trafford on Sunday, April 20.
It was their 15th defeat in the league this season and now the Red Devils are in danger of finishing the season with less than 50 points.
They are almost certain to finish in the bottom half of the league table as well.
It is not an encouraging sign for Ruben Amorim’s men, even though the Portuguese took charge of the team mid-season and cannot be blamed for the collection of players that is currently at his disposal.
Manchester United Got Into the Penalty Box Repeatedly
United were the more dominant team against the Wolves on the day and ventured into the opposition penalty box repeatedly.
They had 60% ball-possession and 12 shots against Wolves’ two, which showed the extent of their dominance.
However, profligacy near the opposition goal was something that came back to haunt them.
In the dying minutes of the match, Mason Mount had a great opportunity to score from Alejandro Garnacho’s cross, but he blasted the ball over the bar, which summed up the day for the hosts.
Pablo Sarabia scored from a free-kick against the run of the play to win the match for the visitors.
However, a team that continues to be wasteful near the opposition goal always runs the risk of being upstaged by a sudden goal scored by their opponents through a moment of individual brilliance.
Manchester United rested some key players like Bruno Fernandes, Harry Maguire, Joshua Zirkzee and Leny Yoro at the start, though Fernandes and Yoro made appearances as substitutes in the second half.
United showed some genuine desire to play attacking football, with wing-backs overlapping often and the likes of Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo trying to hold the ball upfront.
Their passing was really quick in the final third at times, but they lacked a clinical approach, as far as their finishing was concerned.
Rasmus Hojlund has now played a disturbingly high number of Premier League matches without scoring, which is quite a difficult thing for United supporters to digest.
Hojlund’s paltry return of eight goals in 44 matches this season is something that has contributed to the poor performance of his team.
The problem is that even the likes of Garnacho and Mount are not adept at finishing from the edge of the opposition penalty box either.
Fernandes is great at creating moves and finishing from set-pieces. However, it is quite obvious that they need more from their forwards.
Unless and until their ability to finish moves improve, it is hard for Manchester United to improve their standing.
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The Europa League Semi-Finals Await
Manchester United will take on Athletic Club in Bilbao in the first leg of the Europa League semifinal on May 1.
Prior to that, they will take on AFC Bournemouth in Premier League. At the moment, Amorim must be pinning all his hopes on a potential title-triumph in Europa League, which is why he rested the players against Wolves.
However, United will have to keep the fundamentals of the game alright in order to beat Athletic Club over two legs. It remains to be seen whether they are able to do that.
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / Sportimage
Recording Date: 20.04.2025