Matthijs de Ligt demands three Manchester United stars must improve following ‘disappointment’ vs Arsenal

Matthijs de Ligt has explained that three of Manchester United’s stars must improve following a ‘disappointing’ loss against Arsenal in the Premier League.

Rúben Amorim suffered his first loss as Manchester United head coach on Wednesday evening, as his side fell 2-0 to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

United focused on a disciplined defensive setup to blunt Arsenal’s attacking threat, a tactic that proved effective in the first half but left them lacking in offensive drive.

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Arsenal eventually broke the deadlock in the second half, exploiting their strength at set pieces to score twice from corners, exposing a vulnerability in United’s defence.

Despite the defeat, there were positives to take, including a standout performance from Harry Maguire and an encouraging debut for Leny Yoro. Amorim now faces the task of addressing these shortcomings as United look to bounce back stronger.

De Ligt’s demand

Speaking to MUTV after the game, centre-back Matthijs de Ligt explained that the club’s offensive department, which consisted of Alejandro Garnacho, Mason Mount, and Rasmus Højlund on Wednesday evening, must improve following their performance against Arsenal.

“Offensively, we have to, and we will, improve,” the Dutch defender explained. “We are still quite early with the new trainer, but there are some positives. But, overall, we’re really disappointed with the zero points.”

The 25-year-old also commented that there were some positives to take from the result, such as how the team defended as a unit.

“Obviously, now the feeling is really disappointed,” the defender continued. “But, as you mentioned, there were some positives, what you say, the defensive phase.

“The amount amount of chances we conceded without the set plays, also. Obviously, in the end, we play a little bit more offensive, leave a little bit more space, and you get some chances against, but in general, I think that was quite good.”

Continued, he said: we are on the road to improve as a team. I think the manager has said it also. Maybe if you do it a certain way, we have a bigger chance of getting results right now, but in the future we stay the same and we won’t improve.”

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