The 2-1 win achieved by Manchester United against their city rivals at Old Trafford has led to increased hope
among Red Devils fans that they can perhaps win the EPL this season. How did Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag
change his tactics to grab this win, and can we expect him to adopt similar tactics in other games this season?
What Is ten Hag’s Favoured Approach?
The former Ajax manager said when he arrived at Old Trafford earlier this year that he wanted a “proactive” style of football
from the team. He spoke enthusiastically about being brave with the ball and also working hard to press when they don’t have it.
The general idea is to dominate other teams by controlling the possession of the ball, but doing this hasn’t been easy in his first season,
so ten Hag has had to look for alternatives as the team continues to improve and learn the style that he wants them to play.
This look at how
Man United have
improved since the new manager’s arrival points out some of the key areas that he has managed to make better by adding new players
and changing the team’s approach. Among the key factors has been the arrival of Brazilian midfielder Casemiro, who has made it far more
difficult for opponents to control the middle of the pitch. However, the use of different build-up play from deep has been just as important.
How Did He Approach the First Manchester Derby of 2023?
Despite those improvements we just looked at, it seems clear that ten Hag was aware that his team wasn’t yet ready to get toe-to-toe with their city rivals, who’ve honed their style under manager Pep Guardiola since his arrival there in 2016. The Old Trafford team settled for a counter-attacking style that saw them press only at certain times but attack with energy when the chance arose to do so. The general opinion before the game was that Guardiola’s team should win, so this was a sensible approach to take.
The pre-match betting odds had City as favourites in what was expected to be a low-scoring affair.
This will have been based on
numerous sets of data factored into sports betting software as operators aim to provide
the most accurate odds at all times. With over 35,000 live events covered each month, there is a huge range of options for customers, which the bookmakers have to stay on top of. This is only likely to continue growing as areas such as Esports expand.
The counter-attacking style adopted by the Red Devils led to the home team having a mere 29% possession of the ball and completing
only 310 passes compared to the 737 completed by City. However, the approach helped them to win the game 2-1,
albeit with a
fair degree of controversy surrounding the first Manchester United goal, scored by Bruno Fernandes and given after the
offside flag had originally been raised.
This wasn’t the first time this season that the Old Trafford team has relied on a counter-attacking strategy that seems to go against the proactive principles ten Hag spoke about in his early days. They also achieved home victories over Liverpool and Arsenal in a similar way, waiting patiently to punish any mistakes made by their rivals.
By going for a counter-attacking style, ten Hag was able to secure a memorable victory this time. However, this might not be something we see from him too often, as it isn’t the tactical style that he wants to use at Old Trafford, according to his earlier comments.
Match report :
Man Utd 2 - Man City 1