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Victor Lindelof’s performance at Old Trafford against Crystal Palace was so bad that some fans thought Phil Jones wouldn’t be so bad after all.
Lindelof was involved in all three Crystal Palace goals in a 3-1 loss on opening day.
While he wasn’t the only poor United player, the Swede was by far the worst.
What makes this so frustrating is that the warning signs have been there for United over Lindelof in recent weeks.
A walking disaster zone
Lindelof could have cut the cross for Palace’s opener, but he didn’t. Then he gave away a penalty hand for the second.
It was a tough decision, but it indicates where Lindelof is at the moment. Problems tend to find it.
The third goal was the worst of the group, it was passed and converted by Wilfried Zaha, who finished impressively.
This grouping of mistakes followed three major mistakes at the end of United’s 2019/20 season.
Lindelof was hit a cross by Olivier Giroud in Chelsea’s opener in the FA Cup semi-final.
Then, against Southampton in the Premier League, he was overtaken by Michael Obefemi, who pushed him aside to score a late draw, which came close to ruining United’s hopes of finishing in the top four.
He then topped this off in the Europa League semi-final when he lost to Luuk de Jong, who scored a season-ending header for United.
Then, after gifting Anthony Martial a penalty for France in Sweden’s international match, he rested for the next match against Portugal, with his coach aiming for fatigue.
Janne Anderson told Fotball Skanalen: “I was tired. We talked beforehand that he only played one game. After the game against France, he felt very exhausted.
Solskjaer must accept some responsibility
With all of this in mind, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has to accept some responsibility for choosing Lindelof.
Just on Friday he had spoken to Eric Bailly and told the club’s website: “I think we will see Eric a lot. He also looks very strong in training. “
However, the manager is not the only culprit. The United team has been too complacent with the need for a new center-back.
At this stage, it seems unlikely that United will sign a new central defender before the transfer window closes, even though the need seems even greater.
United will try to cope and see if Bailly, Axel Tuanzebe or even Teden Mengi can step up.
It’s possible that one of them can, but Solskjaer must stop being so loyal to Lindelof and accept that it’s time for him to cast a spell off the team for his own good.
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