Both goalkeepers and managers receive scathing criticism.
The man who scored Manchester United’s goal in their draw with Burnley at Old Trafford was Antony, a player Erik ten Hag might have substituted.
However, Andre Onana’s mistake cost his team the win. The goalie dismissed early doubts about his potential for a standout season at United.
But a reckless lunge that gave Burnley a penalty proved costly for United. That choice and this outcome will be used to evaluate both him and Ten Hag.
Dan Sheldon examines the action from Old Trafford in this section.
Was Ten Hag a wise substitution?
Midway through the second half, the United manager made two strange substitutions: he took off Scott McTominay for Kobbie Mainoo and Rasmus Hojlund for Amad Diallo. The latter was greeted with loud jeers.
After entering the game, McTominay moved into midfield while Amad played through the middle.
As Amad warmed up, it was assumed that he would take Antony’s spot, who had been mainly unnoticed for the majority of the game.
Ten Hag, however, can legitimately аrgue that leaving him on the field was the right choice when the £85 million winger scored what ought to have been United’s winning goal in the 79th minute by defying Sander Berge and rolling the ball into the bottom corner.
It was also his first goal of the season in the Premier League.
Ten Hag stated that “it is fair” for Amad to get more playing time prior to the Burnley game, but he once again started Antony ahead of him.
But given Antony’s ambition, Amad will probably need to exercise more patience before being included in the team’s starting lineup.
To judge Onana harshly?
Andre Onana played a great game for eighty-five minutes, particularly in the first half when he stopped five shots, including a great one with his fingertip to keep Burnley’s Lyle Foster at bay.
However, he had a moment of insanity when he attempted to recover the ball in the penalty area, completely missing it and taking Zeki Amdouni out in the process. After that, Amdouni scored from the penalty spot, sending Onana the wrong way.
It was reminiscent of Onana’s early United days, when you never quite knew what he was going to do next and whatever he did was frequently the incorrect choice, as he performed so well in preventing Burnley from scoring.Though it is important to keep in mind that United is a side that loves to give up chances, as they did in this 1-1 draw, it will hurt to give up a careless penalty so soon after taking the lead.
Who will put Fernandes’ inventiveness to rest?
Fernandes is playing a more central role, which is advantageous for United.
At Old Trafford, the club captain led most of his team’s attacking plays and set up multiple chances for teammates to score goals.
In less than two minutes, Alejandro Garnacho was set up by Fernandes with a brilliantly weighted pass at the far post, but Garnacho was unable to find the back of the net.
Although his efforts to lead this United squad forward are admirable, he creates an astonishing amount of chances.
The 29-year-old has produced more over 100 opportunities for United in the Premier League this year, more than doubling that of Garnacho, who is in second place.
His seven assists for United also marks a club milestone. Prior to this game, his xGA (the number of goals his passes should have created) was 9.9, second only to Mohamed Salah of Liverpool (10.9) in all of England’s top division.