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When it rains, it pours – and for Manchester United, they’re in the middle of an almighty storm.
Erik ten Hag has endured a difficult start to the new season, with the United boss having to deal with off-the-pitch issues – involving Jadon Sancho, Antony and Mason Greenwood – not helping his case.
But things haven’t been much better on the pitch, either, and Wednesday night’s 4-3 defeat at the hands of Bayern Munich in the Champions League saw them pick up the unwanted record of conceding three or more goals in three consecutive games for the first time since 1978.
In total, United have conceded a whopping 14 goals in all competitions and the pressure to turn things around for Ten Hag is only increasing.
Manchester United have endured a woeful start to the 2023-24 campaign, losing four games
Erik ten Hag’s (left) United side have conceded 14 goals in all competitions already
His players caught plenty of flak for the manner in which they gave up two goals in the first half against Bayern, while the fourth goal they conceded at the Allianz Arena highlighted a real drop from a team that showed real promise last season and finished third.
And while stats don’t always paint the full picture, this season’s numbers show how standards have dropped in a number of key areas.
Last season, United managed 1.7 goals a game in all competitions, which saw Marcus Rashford enjoy one of his best campaigns in a United shirt.
However, when looking at the first six games from this season, United’s goals per game has dropped to 1.5. Not totally significant especially when new arrival Ramus Hojlund looks promising from what we’ve seen so far but Ten Hag will not just want to rely on one player for his goal output.
United are also taking fewer shots at goal this season, when comparing to what they managed in the 2022-23 campaign.
Last season, United managed on average 16.2 shots at goal but now they’re only managing 14.7, with chances either harder to come by or there’s a reluctance from Ten Hag’s attackers to pop shots at goal.
Compared to last season, United are taking fewer shots at goal per game in all competitions
The quality of their chances has also dropped ever so slightly, with their xG down from 1.9 to 1.8 this season.
But while the attack has seen a slight drop off, it’s the defence where there’s cause for concern.
Alarmingly, United have conceded 2.3 per game this season, a huge jump compared to just the one goal a game last season.
Their quality of chances they’re conceding has also jump dramatically as a result of this, going from 1.2 last campaign to 1.9 in these opening six games.
United are facing more shots at their goal too, up to 15.8 from the 11.5 they faced in all competitions from 2022-23.
Ten Hag’s men are also seeing less of the ball while they’re not making as many passes during the 90 minutes and their duel success percentage rate has also fallen.
However, there is one metric in that United have improved on.
Since Ten Hag arrived at Old Trafford, the Dutchman made his United side into one of the best counter-pressing sides in the Premier League.
The Red Devils are also seeing less of the ball while their overall passes per game are down
Ten Hag revealed in pre-season that he wanted his players to become ‘pressing machines’ and the fruits of their labours showed as they beat Arsenal at the MetLife Stadium.
While other areas have dropped, United have covered a lot more ground this campaign, running 113.2km a game in the Premier League compared to the 107km from last season.
Given that only six games have been played, there’s still plenty of time for Ten Hag and his United players to turn these stats on their head and get out of what could just be a rocky patch.
While we are nowhere near the suggestion of changing management, failure to stop the rot will turn a rotten patch of form into a full-on crisis for Ten Hag.
