Alarming statistic emerges as Erik ten Hag decision immediately backfires vs Liverpool

An alarming statistic emerged following Manchester United’s 3-0 loss against Liverpool, which shows that one of Erik ten Hag’s decisions immediately backfired.

Manchester United suffered their second defeat in three matches on Sunday evening, as they were soundly beaten 3-0 by Liverpool at Old Trafford.

Casemiro‘s two crucial errors in the first half handed Mohamed Salah the chance to set up Luis Díaz for two superb goals.

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Despite Toby Collyer coming on for Casemiro at the break, Liverpool maintained their dominance, and Salah’s third goal sealed the result.

Ahead of the tie, news broke that Amad Diallo had been dropped for Alejandro Garnacho, while Matthijs de Ligt and Joshua Zirkzee replaced Harry Maguire and Mason Mount.

“Harry [Maguire] and Amad also deserve to start, but there are players who start and others who finish the game. And I’m sure on a certain point in this game we need Harry, we need Amad to win the game,” Ten Hag said when asked why the changes were made.

However, with the game not going as the Dutchman had hoped, Amad entered the fray with just over 20 minutes left to play and was instantly impactful.

Although the side did not score, Amad had six touches inside Liverpool’s area, more than any other United player on the field bar Zirkzee, who also had six.

This shows that Ten Hag’s decision to drop Amad was an immediate mistake. United lacked clinical decision-making regarding the final third, but Amad has proven across 2024 that he has that in him. This is what United needed for 90 minutes against Liverpool, not for 20.

He is one of the few United players who constantly drove into the area against Liverpool, and he did similarly against Fulham and Brighton. He is a valuable asset that must be reinstated to the starting XI.

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