After Manchester United and Leeds United drew 2-2, Erik ten Hag's evaluation was crystal apparent. All they had to do was start off stronger.
“When you start a derby like we did it’s unacceptable. You have to be ready to fight and we weren’t ready for the match,” said a disappointed Ten Hag after the game on Wednesday.
The timing and style of the goals Manchester United gave up at the start of each half demonstrated their lack of readiness. Willy Gnonto smoothly slid the ball past David de Gea in the first minute of the game to give Leeds the lead following outstanding work by Pascal Struijk and Tyler Adams to win the ball back. Three minutes into the second half, Crysencio Summerville fired in a cross that was turned in for an own goal by Raphael Varane.
Both goals demonstrated the Red Devils' inability to create from the back and the damage it caused. Ten Hag was forced to start Fred and Marcel Sabitzer in the double pivot due to Casemiro's suspension, Christian Eriksen's injury, Scott McTominay's injury, and other factors.
Erik Ten Hag will need to make some adjustments for the rematch on Sunday in order to avoid losing points to Leeds once more and risk losing ground on Tottenham in the quest for the top four.
Victor Lindelof has witnessed a decline in minutes played as a result of Varane and Lisandro Martinez taking over as United's starting center-half tandem. The Swedish international, however, has lately been utilized as the deeper of the two in United's double pivot in defensive midfield.
In the return fixture of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest, he did so for the first time, and he replaced Sabitzer for the remaining ten minutes of the match against Leeds in the middle of the week.
After the game against Forest, Ten Hag explained why the Swede is an option for Man United at defensive midfield. “Lindelof was educated as a six, as a controlling holding midfielder at Benfica, so I know he can do that and we already tried it before in training and maybe in one game," he explained.
Without Casemiro's defensive presence and shielding, Ten Hag may find that starting Victor Lindelof as their principal defensive midfielder works well in the short term.
The Swedish player has demonstrated an aptitude for long-distance passing as well as the ability to identify Marcus Rashford's runs in the past. Victor Lindelof is efficient and secure with the ball, rarely giving it away carelessly, in stark contradiction to Fred.
In fact, compared to his Man United teammates, Victor Lindelof has the highest pass completion rate (92%) in the Premier League despite having only played five complete matches.
By pairing him with either Fred or Marcel Sabitzer, United's midfield will likely be more evenly matched, and the defense will be less vulnerable to Leeds United.
Marcel Sabitzer made his United debut against Leeds, which came earlier than Ten Hag presumably anticipated, but the Austrian had to play since injuries and a ban decimated United's midfield.
Erik Ten Hag took him off the field after 82 minutes at Old Trafford because it is anticipated that he will be involved once again when the Red Devils plays Leeds at Elland Road.
"I think Marcel Sabitzer did a decent job and played a good game and the reason we took him off is because he didn’t play since a while 90 minutes," Ten Hag told beIN Sports after the game.
Marcel Sabitzer and Fred might have a problem with being too similar to play together, thus playing with Victor Lindelof might be the best option, allowing Sabitzer to move up and support the attack, much like Eriksen does in midfield with Casemiro behind him.
The international Austrian midfielder is adaptable and can fill a variety of positions. He can go in for Christian Eriksen in the deeper role and serve as Bruno Fernandes' backup if necessary.
A statistics gotten from Smarterscout on the player's abilities and ratings showed that the 28 year old's attacking output is rated at 46, defending quality and quantity at 69 and 26 respectively while he has a ball retention of 82.
At Man United, he intends to contribute comparable qualities. Up until the end of the season, the Old Trafford outfit will only profit from Sabitzer's propensity for taking shots, defensive work-rate off the ball, and good leadership qualities.
The Bayern Munich loanee showed what he tends to offer during his debut start against Leeds, and paired with a more reliable defensive presence, he will flourish at Manchester United.
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