Newcastle completely dominated against Manchester United. Ten Hag praised the players anyway

Newcastle took on Manchester United in an almost dry fixture on Saturday night. The home team dominated virtually the whole game, while the visitors got nothing apart from an offside goal. Despite a not very watchable display, Erik ten Hag let it be known that the players stuck to the plan perfectly.

Newcastle clearly dominated

Newcastle entered the game clearly the better side. The home side were more active with the ball on the hoof and when they accidentally lost the ball, they regained it within seconds with their efforts. André Onana in the away goal had no choice but to kick the ball away. However, the home side’s stoppers dominated the air near the halfway line.

The only opportunity the visitors created was a pass from Bruno Fernandes behind the defence, where Alejandro Garnacho ran on to the ball and fired a left-footed shot inside the sixth, but Nick Pope made a great save.

Onana, on the other hand, wasn’t bored, having to dispose of shots from Miguel Almirón and Alexander Isak in the space of a few minutes. Late in the half, Kierran Trippier got a hand to the ball from a free kick, but his attempt ended up on the crossbar.

The home side entered the second half as they did in the first half. They were all over the place. The goal, which had been a long time coming, came in the 55th minute when Trippier’s cross from the right side found a wide open Anthony Gordon at the back post, who had no problem clearing the ball into the net.

Towards the end of the game, Newcastle retreated to the front of their penalty area and chose to defend their slim lead. This choice almost worked out for the home team when in the 89th minute Harry Maguire got the ball behind Martin Dúbravka and crossed Antony’s shot. Unfortunately for the Red Devils, the English stopper was offside.

Newcastle’s midfield dominance

The main difference the match made was in the midfield. In particular, the deployment in which the home players Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes played was evident on the pitch.

They were very active and fought for every loose ball far more than Fernandes and Scott McTominay. Perhaps the only positive performance for the Red Devils was by Kobe Mainoo, who had no problem with the pressure from the home team.

Press conference of ten Hag

Anyone who saw the game had to admit that Newcastle were the better side. Anyway, despite a traditionally lacklustre game, Erik ten Hag praised his team: “This team is resilient, we have a plan and we’re moving forward. I’m yet to speak to the players, we’ve had some great opportunities. In the end it could have been a draw, unfortunately we scored an offside goal.”

The Hag was also asked about Marcus Rashford, who gave the impression he wasn’t interested in the game. He often didn’t even return, leaving Aaron Wan-Bissako in the lurch. However, the Dutch coach didn’t want to comment on the matter, only adding that he would address such matters directly with the player and not with the media.

Thus, Manchester United continues the misery that has become something quite common over the last few weeks. On Wednesday, the Red Devils will face another tough game against Chelsea.

Source: Premier League, Twitter, TNT