Anyway, the game against Sunderland showed the same scenario...United is fragile at the back. With Marcos Rojo not going to make it for the game, Sunderland was determined to pressure United and they were good.
So, honestly to get a 1-1 against Sunderland, who has been pretty impressive under Poyet...it's really something.
Well, this game was without Herrera and Manchester United operate in a rather slow and lackluster manner. Fletcher and Cleverley...these two combinations are horrible.
And Rooney, Van Persie and Mata did not connect in the dynamism that Van Gaal expected of them. Perhaps it's a reminder of why Manchester United will need the service of Angel Di Maria. And even after a brilliant combination between Valencia and Mata, United could not take advantage of the 1 goal lead. In fact, Sunderland always appear to be the team that is eager to get the 3 points.
There was one counter attack from United that showed what Van Gaal is really lacking of...a player with pace like Robben, something that maybe Di Maria could provide.
They conceded the equalizer because United were giving too many set pieces to the opponents. Cleverley and Fletcher simply lost the plot, and in the second half, the introduction of Welbeck and Januzaj helped United to increase the pace and intensity of their attack.
There wasn't much to talk about in the second half although I feel that those who claim that Young dive was a bit too harsh. The replay definitely showed contact, and while Young may have exaggerated it, it wasn't a dive. It's only either a penalty or no penalty, but of course, the Liverpool fans will insist it's a dive, just like how they insisted Suarez didn't bite.
It was a bad performance, and I would said United were lucky to get a point from here...but if Van Gaal were to sign Di Maria, it's obvious he's got a plan. I'm confident United can go on from here, playing better against tougher opponents as well.
I hope next time around they do better.
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