100% duels lost: Man Utd dud who lost the ball every 2 touches let Ralf down big time – opinion
Manchester United was eliminated from the Champions League Friday night in a tense game against Atletico Madrid at Old Trafford, leaving the club without a title this season.
The Red Devils have already been eliminated from the FA Cup and the Champions League, and they are currently 20 points behind their next-door neighbors, Manchester City, at the top of the Premier League standings, making winning the league this season extremely unlikely.
Despite having a lot more possession of the ball (60 percent) and more shots on target over the course of the game, Ralf Rangnick’s side could not avoid defeat versus Atletico.
Many individuals in the team failed to step up in the season-defining game for Manchester United, which is to blame.
One player that fell short of expectations was Bruno Fernandes, who was reintroduced into the lineup after missing the win over Spurs due to sickness last weekend, and Rangnick definitely made a mistake by starting the Portuguese midfielder against his winning midfield from their previous meeting.
According to SofaScore, Fernandes contributed virtually little to his team during his 67-minute play yesterday night, with no interceptions or tackles and losing 100% of his duels.
He also failed on all of his dribbles, lost possession of the ball every two touches, and was dribbled past once by an opponent.
The £100,000-a-week dud was eventually benched and replaced in the second half by French midfielder Paul Pogba.
However, it was too little, too late for the German coach and his club, as they were eliminated from the European championship, leaving superstar striker Cristiano Ronaldo trophy-less for the first time in over a decade.
The interim Manchester United manager will now devote his full attention to earning the club’s second shot in the Champions League next season by clinching a top-four berth in a tight competition with Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal.
They are now fifth in the Premier League, one point behind Arsenal, who have three games in hand on their rivals, so Rangnick and his players will face a significant battle.
