Chapter 156: Happenings
The friendly match between Manchester United and Aston Villa had come to an end, and the result was exactly what many critics had been predicting for weeks.
Manchester United’s attack? Brilliant. Their defense? Absolutely shambolic.
The Red Devils had won the match 6-4, a scoreline that perfectly summed up the state of their squad. Every single attacker had contributed—Cristiano Ronaldo bagged a hat-trick, David Jones shone with two goals and an assist, Marcus Rashford added a goal and an assist of his own, and Antony had delivered two assists to his teammates. Even the midfield had looked solid, with Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba each registering an assist.
Yet, despite all that attacking brilliance, there was no ignoring the glaring issue at the back. The team had conceded four goals. Not just four goals—four goals to a single player. Ollie Watkins, the English-born Aston Villa striker, had run riot against United’s backline.
Decimated them. Exposed them. Embarrassed them.
Standing at the edge of the technical area, Erik ten Hag remained still, his arms crossed, his face unreadable. But inside, he was thinking—analyzing. He had always been a stubborn man, a firm believer in his tactical principles. But even he had to admit—maybe the critics had a point.
Maybe their defense really was terrible.
His sharp gaze followed the players as they walked toward the tunnel, but his mind was still replaying the defensive disasters he had just witnessed.
His thoughts immediately went to Harry Maguire. The club captain. The so-called leader of the backline. Yet, in this match, he had been a walking disaster. He had been slow to react, dragged out of position too easily, and worst of all, his decision-making had been questionable at best. Watkins had turned him inside out more times than he could count.
Then there was Victor Lindelöf. A decent ball-playing defender, but tonight had been one of his worst performances. He lacked physicality, was slow to close down space, and had allowed Aston Villa’s forwards too much room to operate.
Luke Shaw—a left-back known more for his attacking contributions than his defensive reliability—had been caught high up the pitch too many times, leaving the left flank wide open. He had also been sluggish in tracking back. It was clear that Shaw’s fitness wasn’t at its peak yet.