Former Manchester United captain and now pundit, Gary Neville, has advised Erik ten Hag to make a bold decision ahead of United’s clash with Liverpool.
Speaking with Sky Sports’ Jamie Carragher, Neville highlighted the recent issues with United’s performance, pointing out that the team has lacked “control” in their games. Despite narrowly winning against Fulham on the opening day, their subsequent 2-1 defeat to Brighton followed a worrying trend from last season. In that game, Ten Hag deployed Bruno Fernandes in an unfamiliar advanced role, with Mason Mount providing support from midfield. When summer signing Joshua Zirkzee was brought on at halftime, he almost scored, only to have his goal disallowed for offside.
Neville emphasized that United’s lack of a strong presence upfront could be a significant problem against Arne Slot’s Liverpool side. “They need to get the season going and raise their performance levels because, in the first two weeks, it was clear that the standards were not quite there,” Neville explained on Sky Sports. “Perhaps the imbalance in the team comes from not having a proper center forward, with Zirkzee not starting in the first halves of games. But I think that will change on Sunday. We’ll see, but I sense he’s more concerned than he lets on.”
He added, “Erik ten Hag has a knack for finding the right result when it’s most needed. I worry for him a bit if United were to lose badly on Sunday. But I don’t see that happening. I don’t think it’ll be a heavy defeat for United by any means, and in fact, while I’m not overly confident, they have a way of showing up in crucial moments for Ten Hag and getting the results when it counts.”
Liverpool, in recent Premier League meetings, have had the upper hand at Old Trafford, with just one loss in their last six visits, securing two wins and three draws. Slot’s team has started the season strong with back-to-back 2-0 wins over Ipswich Town and Brentford, but they haven’t faced a challenge as tough as the one expected today.
