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Rashford’s step forward
Marcus Rashford took to Twitter on Friday afternoon to once again show his anger at child food poverty and this time he said goodbye with a message to his many critics, who have told him to “stick with football” in recent years. weeks.
Rashford will never limit himself to soccer and the world is a better place for that. But at Amex Stadium, he showed that he can play football and fight for the causes he believes in. Anyone who thought he was taking his eyes off the ball would be disappointed.
This feels like a great season for Rashford. Last year was the first time he finally did it consistently in front of goal, but if you have the ambition to become a true world-class forward then you need to produce those numbers over and over again.
After a false start against Crystal Palace, he looked strong in a brief cameo in Luton Town on Tuesday and was much better again on the South Coast. His career timing is something he has to improve on as he was a little too early to create a disallowed goal for Mason Greenwood and then scored himself from an offside position early in the second half, but not had to wait a long time to find the back of the net.
Brighton’s defense was powerless to stop his smooth run from the midline, sliding from the left, and his final change to knock Ben White out of the picture was a moment of sublime composure. This was the kind of opportunity that Rashford has been accused of seizing before, but this time he was icy inside the penalty area.
Rashford should look to reach and possibly surpass 30 goals in all competitions this season. Those are the numbers that elite attackers are getting now and Rashford can join their group this period.
Wan-Bissaka vs. Lamptey
The pattern on the right wing on both sides was fascinating during the game and it was impossible to shake the feeling that what Tariq Lamptey was doing for Brighton as a winger is exactly what Aaron Wan-Bissaka should be producing for United on the right. . back.
Lamptey could have more freedom as a winger, but United should dominate these games and that should allow their wingers to advance further. Instead, Wan-Bissaka was forced into defensive work and barely glimpsed beyond the midline. That’s an attacking threat that United should use that they just didn’t have.
Wan-Bissaka defended very well, but we have gotten used to that. If this team goes to the next level, it will need greater attacking contributions from its wings, the kind of straight running and invention Lamptey was offering the Seagulls.
It cost Brighton £ 42 million less than United paid for Wan-Bissaka and while it’s a bet that United is unlikely to take, the United man should be looking at the impact Lamptey had on the game in the last third and try adding it to your own game.
Lindelof inclusion
The biggest surprise when United was announced an hour before kickoff was that Victor Lindelof had stayed on the side ahead of Eric Bailly.
After their fights last week and Bailly’s performance against Luton Town on Tuesday, it seemed certain that Lindelof would find himself offside, but instead his association with Harry Maguire received another departure.
United defended better than they had against Crystal Palace a week ago, but they were still not entirely convincing, with the Seagulls taking 18 shots from home on their goal.
This must have felt like a kick in the teeth for Bailly. What else can you do to have a chance in the Premier League? Solskjaer clearly wants Lindelof and Maguire to become the secure partnership he’s dreaming of, but the evidence suggests that Bailly deserves a chance at some point.
Midfield control
United’s midfield appeared to be stable towards the end of last season, but it would have been a concern to see Nemanja Matic, Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes unable to control play in the first half.
It was Steven Alzate and Adam Lallana who set the pace and were behind Brighton’s strong display in the first half and the United trio simply couldn’t stop them.
This was an area where match fitness may well have played a role, with Pogba clearly still below fitness level, which perhaps shouldn’t come as much of a surprise given his positive COVID-19 test result on last month, but it was still a surprise to see. , Fernandes and Matic outperformed.
It must have been a disputed area at halftime as United were much better in midfield in the early stages of the second half. That was behind the encouraging 15 minutes after United’s break, but the familiar pattern soon returned. United’s failure to control midfield in their first two games of the season should be cause for concern.
Penalty madness
Those social media comedians who had the memes ready every time United won a penalty last season were enjoying the turnaround until final action at Amex.
United won a record number of penalties last season and most of them were deserved, but that scale of numbers would always level out this season and now United have conceded shots from the point in their first two Premier League games.
Handball against Lindelof last weekend was a controversial decision, but Fernandes’ clumsy challenge at Lamptey was always a penalty. It was exactly the kind of move United forced defenders to make last season, especially once the season resumed in June.
But Fernandes was calm personified when United won the second penalty of their season, following Juan Mata’s effort against Luton Town in the middle of the week. It was a crazy finish to the game, but Fernandes stayed cool to collect all three points for his team.
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