- Manchester United lost 3-0 to rivals Manchester City at Old Trafford on Sunday
- Ex-Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger highlighted two major issues in United’s team
- Wenger believes that Erik ten Hag’s side have lost all hope and ‘fighting spirit’
Manchester United are a team with ‘no hope’ left, Arsene Wenger claimed after the Red Devils’ bitter 3-0 defeat against rivals Manchester City on Sunday.
Erling Haaland netted a brace for the Premier League champions before setting up Phil Foden for City’s third, as Pep Guardiola’s side won the Manchester bragging rights in style at Old Trafford.
Although United showed flashes of promise in the first half, creating but missing a hatful of golden chances, Erik ten Hag’s side fell away in the second and struggled to manage City’s dominance in possession.
Reflecting on the Red Devils’ defeat, former Arsenal boss Wenger admitted he felt sorry for the club because ‘there’s no hope in the team’.
‘I would say the gulf between the two teams became bigger and bigger as the game went on,’ the Frenchman told beIN Sports.
‘In the end, for such a big club you felt sorry for Man United because there’s no hope there in the team.
‘I don’t see where they can improve, basically. This team has lost confidence, quality and even spirit today. I would say it was not a great fighting spirit from Man United, on top of that.’
Wenger urged that Ten Hag got his tactics wrong by continually asking his side to play the ball back to goalkeeper Andre Onana, rather than pushing forwards with possession.
‘I believe where Man United suffers a lot, first of all is about the quality, the individual quality of the players,’ he continued.
‘And I felt today they were very poor to build the game up from the back. They gave the ball so many times to the goalkeeper when they had possibilities to play forward. I would stay it started there.
‘Then you make the whole team uncertain and lack confidence because when you feel the fear is behind, they do not want the ball.’
He continued: ‘I would say the second part of their big problem today was the distances between the striker and the defenders was huge.
‘There were situations where the strikers were closing down, trying to pressure, and the defenders were 20 metres behind the halfway line.
‘You cannot win the ball back against a team like Man City when the distances are too big.
‘The team was not compact enough, after that the difference of individual quality.
‘If you tell me tonight how many players who get in the first XI of Man City? For me that sums it up. Usually, in a big game or a big derby you’d say I would take three or four from here and there. That sums up the problem of Man United, basically.’
Manchester United slipped to eighth in the Premier League after the defeat, 11 points off league leaders Tottenham and eight behind the top four places.
Meanwhile, Manchester City closed the gap on Ange Postecoglou’s side by going level on points with Arsenal in second, now just two points behind top spot.
The Red Devils host Newcastle in the Carabao Cup in midweek before travelling to Craven Cottage to face Fulham on Saturday.
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
