Manchester United 4-4 AFC Bournemouth match verdict and review
Man Utd have improved their attack but there is huge work to be done in the defensive side of their game.
Manchester United spent £200 million to refresh one area of their squad in the summer transfer window; it was easy to see which in their 4-4 draw against Bournemouth on Monday night. United produced one of their best attacking performances under Ruben Amorim as they terrorised the Bournemouth goal, but they were undone by some sloppy defensive work as they improbably scored four goals but didn't manage to win the match.
Man City (38) are the only team to have scored more goals than United (30) in the Premier League this season, though a lot of that is down to the brilliance of Erling Haaland in attack. United have actually produced the most expected goals (xG) of any side in the division, with 33.86xG, ahead of City who have overperformed with 31.89xG created.
Yet, for their attacking brilliance, it has been dreadful at the back. United have conceded more goals than any side in the top half of the league and managed just one clean sheet across all competitions this season. It isn't a new problem either, with just six league clean sheets in their 43 matches under Amorim so far.
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United don't plan to overhaul defence
Ruben Amorim played down the suggestion Manchester United might need to overhaul their defence in the same manner they refreshed their attack in the summer.
United added Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko to their forward line during the last transfer window but do not expect to add more than one defender next year. United are in the market for a centre-back and a wing-back at the end of the season, but expect their defensive record to improve when they have better availability in the backline.
Harry Maguire and Matthijs De Ligt both missed the Bournemouth draw due to injury while Noussair Mazraoui was unavailable due to his participation in the Africa Cup of Nations. It meant Leny Yoro and Ayden Heaven started in the backline alongside Luke Shaw, with Diogo Dalot and Amad Diallo in the wide roles.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Amorim was asked whether United needed to sign defenders next year. "No, I think we have talent in the back, we have quality players in the back, we just need to be better as a team defending," he said. "But that is a good point, that at least shows that we took care of the offence, we are improving, but I think it's not the same situation. We have the characteristics, we just need to work together and to improve our players because they have quality to defend better."
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