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After Victor Lindelof was overtaken by West Brom’s Mbaye Diagne in Manchester United’s 1-1 draw at the Hawthorns on Sunday, Gary Neville sees it as confirmation of the team’s defensive weaknesses.
“I don’t think the discussions we’re having now are anything new,” Neville said. Monday night football. “We said at the beginning of the season that Manchester United needed a center-back and that there were questions about the goalkeeper.
“If you look at the goal against West Brom, it won’t take away those feelings. They were brought back to the area with Diagne fighting Lindelof, and West Brom keeps the ball alive. Sam Allardyce will have been working on this all week.
“I would have worked in positions over wide areas, and both Maguire and Lindelof don’t move up. They don’t move their feet three, four, five yards. They never do and they have to. If they don’t. Don’t start, never do. They will get to a point where they win the league.
“Going back 10 years it was the same: you have to be aggressive to get out of your box. What happens is that Lindelof is immobilized. He was immobilized by a player who is stronger than him, who exceeds him in muscles and who intimidates him. Once you’re in that position, it’s a nightmare.
“There will be people who will say it is a foul. It is never a foul. It is never a foul at all. It is a brilliant header. Lindelof is too deep and outgunned. He is fighting the forward.
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FREE TO SEE: Highlights from West Brom’s draw with Manchester United
“When I was playing central defense for United, which was 10-15 games per season, there was always a game where I physically couldn’t handle it. I have two goals that I remember sticking in my head as mass learning experiences. .
“The first was against Les Ferdinand [QPR, December 1994]. It was bright in the air and I was like Lindelof yesterday. He got up early and I was trying to fight him, but I had no chance.
“The second I remember was against Alan Shearer at Old Trafford [Newcastle, January 2002]. Shearer knew what he was doing. He’s similar in height to Ferdinand, and I think Lindelof is in this position where he’s put under pressure like I was with that goal where he wasn’t tight enough.
“Lindelof has aerial problems, while Maguire has problems when the ball is played behind him and he has someone running towards him one on one.”
A look at the excellent Manchester United central defense partnerships of Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister in the 1990s and Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand of the decade that followed, shows that the pairs had remarkably similar records when playing alongside Peter Schmeichel and Edwin. van der Sar respectively.
The earlier trio averaged 2.2 points per game together and so did the later combination. David de Gea, Lindelof and Maguire are averaging 1.8 points per game together. United’s legendary trios also conceded far less than a goal per game in the Premier League, something that is not true in the current group.
“If you look back at the best center-back pairs in the Premier League that Manchester United have ever had, the relationship between them and the goalkeeper is critical to winning the Premier League.
“If you look at Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic, they had a midfield in front of them of Paul Scholes, Michael Carrick, Ryan Giggs and Cristiano Ronaldo. There is not really a defender between them.
“When you look now at this Lindelof and Maguire pairing, you could attribute the 1.8 points per game to the fact that they are playing on a weaker team, but they concede one goal per game. Even with Fred and Scott McTominay up front They have two defensive midfielders sitting in front of them and they don’t move.
“The key is that only one of the last 20 Premier League champions has conceded at least one goal per game. That tells you about these three by De Gea, Lindelof and Maguire. To win titles, that goalkeeper triangle and two center – the backs must be as solid as a rock.
“They need to be dominant and these three are not dominant. The goalkeeper is not dominant at the moment, although I thought he did well on Sunday, and the two centrals are not dominant. They receive too many goals and if they concede one or more goals per game, you’re not going to win a Premier League, Manchester United have to look at that.
“They are not going to leave Maguire out. They have invested £ 80 million, he is the cornerstone of the defense and around which they will build the defense. So they need to find a partner for him. It has to be someone of physique and profile. by Eric Bailly Someone who is fast, good in the air, strong and can cover Maguire one on one, but also someone who is going to get them up onto the field to allow them to play a little higher.
“Lindelof’s problem is Maguire and Maguire’s problem is Lindelof. I think if you put Lindelof next to Van Dijk at Liverpool, I think he’s a really good player. He understands the game, he reads the game, he’s a good defender. If a Ferdinand or a Van Dijk was alongside, I think they would be a great couple. The problem is that he is with someone who is not the most mobile of Harry Maguire.
“The problem with Lindelof is that they have invested £ 80 million in Maguire, so they will have to put someone next to him. They both seem to back off a bit and you need someone who can help them.”
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