Manchester United and Newcastle played out a scrappy but ultimately entertaining 1-1 draw in a game that saw The Red Devils concede for the first time and drop their first points under new manager Ralf Rangnick. Both teams will feel they should have come away with more, but poor defending, bad finishing, and a lack of technical quality in the middle of the pitch meant that both teams had to settle for a share of the spoils.
𝙏𝙀𝘼𝙈-𝙉𝙀𝙒𝙎
HWTL! #NEWMUN pic.twitter.com/lg3LMB3lfu
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) December 27, 2021
Newcastle lined up in a 4-5-1 / 4-3-3 formation, and were very rigid in their application. Without the ball they collapsed into a strict 4-5-1, always leaving Wilson up front in order to help them get out quickly, while when they broke their wide men Saint-Maximin and Fraser pushed up quickly and effectively to support the attack.
Man Utd started the first half in an unusual shape, and I was actually surprised to see them line up in the same system as the graphics showed. They played in an adapted version of a 4-4-2, with Rashford on the right and Fernandes on the left, although Dalot pushing forward encouraged Rashford to come inside and make a front three, at which point Fernandes would also tuck in from the left and make a 3 in midfield. What stood out most for me was the presence of Dalot and Telles at full-back, in place of regulars Wan-Bissaka and Shaw, added to the return of Varane at centre back, making up a Man United back four that have very rarely played together.
Early Signs of Rangnick’s Influence
With a lot of attention paid to how Rangnick’s appointment will affect Man United’s season, it was interesting to see them set out their stall from the kick off, with a long ball played forward to the right and straight out of play. It was clear that Rangnick wanted his players to get the ball forward, albeit that they did so quite slowly, and the pattern of play in the first half suggested that they had identified the Newcastle left as a weak point to exploit. As previously mentioned, Dalot getting forward allowed Rashford to roam, and during the first half the vast majority of Man United’s forward play was down their right flank.
Newcastle, on the other hand, looked to exploit the spaces in behind the advancing full backs, something I criticised them for not doing earlier in the season against Chelsea. They managed to force an early scare playing down the right hand side when Maguire missed his kick trying to clear, but it was only a few minutes later when their strategy paid off. The goal came from a Newcastle throw on their left flank, from which the Man United defence managed to mix up their marks, resulting in Maguire and Varane inadvertently switching sides after Varane lost possession. Wilson immediately found Saint-Maximin, but Dalot was very slow to get across thanks to the huge gap left between himself and his centre backs, and once he does close him down he is hesitant to show him the outside and force him away from goal. When Sant-Maximin cuts inside, Maguire, who is covering Dalot at that point, allows him too much time to get his shot away, and with three touches Sant-Maximin was able to cut out 3 red defenders and finish.
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) December 28, 2021
Newcastle Try to Exploit United’s Weaknesses
After the goal, it was clear that Newcastle had worked out that Manchester United’s defence were very uncomfortable facing their own goal, and they looked to play over the top where they could, especially down the wings in behind the full backs. Adding De Gea’s poor kicking into the mix led to sustained pressure from Newcastle and a high rate of turnovers and transitions, benefitting Newcastle’s counter-attacking plan. Their use of the ball was much, much better than it was earlier in the season under Bruce, with players looking to limit themselves to one or two touches and get the ball forward as quickly as possible.
Despite Rangnick’s plan to get the ball forward, Manchester United were very slow in possession and looked technically very poor. Up front, Ronaldo asked for the ball in behind several times, but despite looking dangerous on the few occasions the ball was played in behind the defence, it happened very few times.
Ironically, Shelvey’s dangerous shot on 22 minutes was a good example of how Rangnick likes his teams to play. Shelvey gave the ball away in his own half attempting a risky pass, but when the ball eventually breaks to Fred, he mis-controls and lunges in an attempt to win it back and Shelvey leads a 3v3 break. Ultimately, the decision to shoot from distance was the wrong one, but those are the kinds of chances all teams are looking to create.
Manchester United did enjoy a limited amount of success just before half time when a ball played in to Ronaldo’s feet from just inside the Newcastle half allowed him to flick it on to Fernandes and create a great chance. He was ultimately flagged offside, but that move showed some promise for what Rangnick is trying to implement.
After a first half that resembled a tennis match at times, I wasn’t surprised that Rangnick changed things at half time. I would think that Rangnick probably underestimated Newcastle, as I felt it was pretty obvious that a long-ball style wouldn’t work against a team that are happy to play with 10 men behind the ball. When the opposition are playing a low block, it’s key to move the ball around and look for openings – unless you have a Peter Crouch or Andy Carroll – and if I’m honest I don’t know why he didn’t change things earlier.
However, the changes did come at half time when Cavani replaced the anonymous Greenwood, and Sancho came on for the wasteful Fred. Sancho went to the right wing to replace Rashford, who came to the left to take over from Fernandes, who shuffled into the middle where he would see more of the ball. After just 2 minutes of the second half Fernandes was already more involved than he was in the first, receiving the ball in the middle of the pitch and spreading it out wide to stretch Newcastle’s defence. Man United looked a lot more comfortable, aiming to keep the ball for longer and circulate it from one flank to the other, looking for those opportunities to cut through the Newcastle defence, and Rashford managed their first shot on target of the game after 49 minutes.
United’s Quick Movement Undid Newcastle
This circulation is what led to Man United’s goal, which was almost an exact copy of an earlier chance that Cavani managed to put wide. On both occasions, the ball was played quickly through the midfield from back to front, and the extra width on Man United’s flanks means that Newcastle’s defence is stretched. When the ball is played quickly across from one flank to the other and then back into the box, the Toon defence couldn’t adjust themselves quickly enough to pick up the attackers, leaving Cavani with the time and space to have two stabs at goal.
Despite the improvements in the final third, Man United still looked vulnerable at the back, and would likely have been punished by a higher-quality team. Sant-Maximin missed a glorious chance to make it 2-0 just after half time, and Newcastle managed to break several times in the second half without finding a finishing touch.
47' So close to a second!
Krafth does brilliantly down the right and fires it across the face of goal towards Saint-Maximin who just can't convert from close range.
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) December 27, 2021
The result could have been so different but for a great save from De Gea after a Newcastle break led to a rebound back into the area off the post.
Throughout the second half, Man United looked uncomfortable playing out from the back, and didn’t like the pressure put on them by the Newcastle forwards. They were also very hesitant on the break and didn’t take full advantage of transitions as Newcastle did. This was summed up in the 63rd minute when Newcastle broke through Joelinton, who picked out Fraser beautifully to shoot at De Gea. Man United immediately broke the other way, but when presented with a 4v4 against the Newcastle defence Rashford held on to the ball far too long and had to settle for a scuffed shot at goal.
Draw a Fair Result
Overall, a draw probably reflected the flow of the game, although I do think that had Manchester United started the first half the way they did the second they would have had the strength to see of Newcastle. Of course, Newcastle finished strongly as Man United took risks at the back in order to see more of the ball going forward, but I think with fresh legs and a nervy Newcastle team they could have pressed their advantage early on.
What is interesting is how Eddie Howe got one over Ralf Rangnick in the game. Newcastle looked much more comfortable with getting the ball forward quickly and exploiting the gaps in the Man United defence, while Man United themselves looked lost in possession and unable to play forward quickly. I mentioned in my piece last week that I believe that Manchester United will be the “best of the rest” this season with the manager and squad they have – they should be capable of beating the teams below them but I expect them to struggle against the top 5 or 6 teams. On this evidence, though, it looks like Howe’s experience of English football and his knowledge of his players was a key factor in Newcastle taking points off Manchester United and being a shade away from a shock win.
