Premier League hits and misses: Manchester United paying the price for not spending on a striker in January | Football News

Weghorst looks an obvious weakness

Nineteen starts in a row for Wout Weghorst. Only Bruno Fernandes can say the same at Manchester United. But the Dutch striker has been hooked before the hour in five of those games and the only surprise at St James’ Park was that he made it to the 62nd minute.

His counter-pressing has been lauded and its significance should not be dismissed but the most notable aspect of his off-the-ball work against Newcastle was that there was little else. He mustered only 10 touches of the ball in the match, completing just four passes.

His replacement Anthony Martial offered much more, finding a team-mate twice as many times in half the time. He came close to scoring too, seeing his shot deflected wide. Weghorst’s only effort was a missed attempt on the angle where the idea and the execution seemed off.

It has become a statement of the obvious to point out that Weghorst does not have the quality required of a Manchester United centre-forward. One suspects Erik ten Hag is aware of this and will address it in the summer. Circumstances dictated the need for a quick fix.

But it still bears repeating when the contrast is so marked. When Alexander Isak is threading through clever passes as he did for opening goal. For all the money spent and wages paid, Ten Hag is dealing with a deficiency at the top of the pitch. On occasion, it will be costly.
Adam Bate

Guimaraes wins battle of the Brunos

It was billed as the battle of the Brunos – and the Newcastle one came out on top.

Both Guimaraes and Fernandes ended up with exactly the same amount of touches in the game – but it was what the players did with and without the ball that mattered.

The Newcastle man put in the perfect all-round display that earned him player-of-the-match. He won four times as many balls in the middle of the park than Fernandes and completed more final third passes and take-ons than anyone on the pitch.

The Brazilian’s involvement in Joe Willock’s opener cannot be overstated. Linking up well with Isak before putting in a delightful second assist, it summed up how Guimaraes is at the centre of everything good that Newcastle do.

It was a moment on Sunday that Fernandes could only watch on and dream of. Manchester United lacked passion and determination at St James’ Park – that’s according their own manager and left-back. A reminder that Fernandes was the one wearing the armband…
Sam Blitz

Moyes turning London Stadium back into fortress

West Ham had a three-week break owing to their fixture with Man City being postponed and the subsequent European Championship qualifiers, which gave David Moyes’ charges a chance to take stock ahead of a hectic schedule.

Sunday’s 1-0 win over Southampton was the first of nine games for the Hammers in April, with the majority of them at home and the away visits not too taxing in terms of travel.

After results on Saturday conspired to leave them second from bottom, Nayef Aguerd’s first-half header rocketed them to the heady heights of 14th and helped build the momentum Moyes craves.

‘Must-win’ games have been a regular occurrence for the under-pressure manager this season, but just as they had done against Everton and Nottingham Forest recently, his team pulled out a victory when he needed it most.

They are now unbeaten in each of their last five Premier League games at the London Stadium – keeping a clean sheet in all three victories during that run.

With Leicester one of two clubs to swing the axe on Sunday – the news of Brendan Rodgers’ departure filtered through during this match – only Moyes and Steve Cooper at Forest of the bottom nine sides have kept their jobs this season.

West Ham’s latest win was far from pretty but it was absolutely priceless. Moyes is breathing a little easier, albeit with his side only a point above the drop zone, but they can put further daylight between themselves and the bottom three at home to Newcastle on Wednesday.
Ben Grounds

Selles struggling to solve set-piece woes

Despite some positive displays, including fighting back to draw 3-3 with Tottenham before the international break, Southampton remain bottom and – while far from adrift – they are running out of time.

The south-coast side have only earned 11 points in 16 games since Ralph Hasenhuttl was sacked in November and their third coach of the season, Ruben Selles, faces an increasingly difficult task to keep them afloat.

For Selles, one problem he is yet to solve since replacing Nathan Jones is Southampton’s wretched record at defending set-pieces.

They have now conceded 13 goals from dead ball situations in the Premier League this season – only Bournemouth have conceded more (17). Indeed, the Saints also lead the league in 2022/23 for headed goals conceded (12).

“It is always frustrating when you concede a goal but especially from set plays, and when you lose by it,” Sells said. “We need to be stronger in these situations. It wasn’t the four-minute wait for the goal to be awarded, but the goal itself which affected our mentality.

“Set-pieces is a part of the game we’ve not been good at this season and we need to step up during the coming games.”

Southampton almost snatched a point five minutes from time when substitute Paul Onuachu nodded James Ward-Prowse’s cross against the crossbar.

The recent draws at Manchester United and at home to Spurs – along with the victory not so long ago at Chelsea – showcased what Selles’ side are capable of, but this damaging result against a relegation rival firmly checks their progress.
Ben Grounds