Manchester United’s poor run of form continued with a 2-2 draw away from home against Everton. It was a disappointing performance for much of the game from the Red Devils, who were 2-0 down at halftime thanks to first-half goals from Beto and Abdoulaye Doucoure.
In a chaotic final 20 minutes plus stoppage time, Bruno Fernandes scored a well-directed freekick past Jordan Pickford, who was rooted to the spot, to pull one back. Moments later, Manuel Ugarte fired home a spectacular volley, after controlling a loose ball on his chest, to equalise.
There were claims for a last-gasp penalty for the Toffees after Ashley Young was brought down in the box. It was initially given on the field, but the referee reversed his decision after being sent to the monitor to have a second look.
It was a poor performance from United’s defensive unit, who were leaky again as their side went behind in a game once more. Harry Maguire was someone who particularly struggled.
Maguire’s stats vs. Everton
It was a tough day at the office for one of United’s most experienced players, Maguire. The England international was arguably at fault for Doucoure’s goal. He was outjumped by the Everton midfielder, who won the race to Andre Onana’s parry up in the air, nodding home for 2-0.
At times, the United number five showed his dominance. For much of the game, he was strong in the air, although not when it mattered most, and was also progressive and calm on the ball. As per Sofascore, he won six from nine aerial duels and had a 97% pass accuracy.
However, the former Red Devils captain struggled in the crucial moments. The Manchester Evening News journalist Samuel Luckhurst gave him a 4/10 and said his error for Doucoure’s goal was ‘reminiscent’ of one he would have made in Erik ten Hag’s first season.
It was a disappointing performance from such a crucial player under Ruben Amorim. Maguire has been in strong form for much of the season, but the Portuguese manager will be hoping this was nothing more than a blip, a one-off game.
However, there is one United player who continues to struggle for form in a United shirt.
The United player who needs to be sold
It has been a dire season in front of goal for United. They loaned out one of their richest sources of goals, Marcus Rashford, and Amad is out for the rest of the campaign with a knee injury.
That leaves a lot of pressure on Rasmus Hojlund, who has been anonymous for much of 2024/25. The Dane has just two goals in 21 Premier League games and is now 11 games without a top-flight goal. Against Everton, he was described as a “passenger” by football analyst Waseem.
Luckhurst agreed that Hojlund struggled against the Toffees. He gave him a shockingly low rating of 1/10 and did not hold back in his review. He described the Dane as ‘hopeless’, and said he ‘did very little right all afternoon’.
Hojlund was substituted at the 70-minute mark, replaced by young striker Chido Obi. One academy analyst was full of praise for the youngster, saying there had been “no drop in quality since his introduction”.
Statistically, there was not too much difference between him and Hojlund. In 50 minutes less, Obi had just two fewer touches, with ten to Hojlund’s 12, and won more duels, one out of three to the United number nine’s zero from eight.
Stat
Hojlund
Obi
Minutes played
70
20
Touches
12
10
Passes completed
4/6
7/7
Dribbled past
1
0
Duels won
0/8
1/3
It is becoming concerning that Hojlund simply cannot break this goalless run he is on. At times, he can look out of his depth, which must be frustrating to see from Amorim’s point of view. His side needs goals, and Hojlund is not providing them.
Perhaps his future at Old Trafford is not as guaranteed as it once seemed. Time might be running out in a United shirt for the former Atalanta man. He certainly needs goals soon, or it would not be a surprise if the Red Devils decided to go as far as selling him in the summer.
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