Rio Ferdinand blasts Manchester United star for “abysmal” performance vs Fulham

Manchester United secured an important victory in the Premier League against Fulham on the weekend but it was far from a good performance from Ruben Amorim’s men.

For any spectators, it was a sore watch as Manchester United and Fulham tried to play out one of the most boring games of the Premier League season.

However, Ruben Amorim and his side will be very pleased that they managed to get the three points over the line despite the performance on the night.

In a game of little quality, it was a deflected strike from Lisandro Martínez which looped over the Fulham goalkeeper to give United the lead.

Toby Collyer once again impressed and came off the bench to save his team with a crucial goal-line clearance after it looked like United were going to concede another set-piece goal.

There is still a lot of improvement needed from Amorim’s team and there were multiple players who were not good enough at Craven Cottage.

Ferdinand blasts Højlund’s performance vs Fulham

Rasmus Højlund was the worst player on the pitch for United until he was replaced early in the second half by Joshua Zirkzee.

He won zero out of six aerial duels and just two out of five on the ground. The Danish striker failed to hold anything up and his display was described as “abysmal” by United fans online.

Rio Ferdinand was also far from impressed by the 21-year-old, who limited United’s ability to progress the play due to his poor performance.

“I’d be surprised if he’s not getting a few fingers pointed at him in the changing room at half-time,” Ferdinand told TNT Sports during the interval.

“Hold the ball, keep the ball, you’re the platform for us to get up the pitch and I think far too many times he’s too loose in those situations.

“The amount of turnovers he’s had today, as I said I’d be surprised if players [haven’t had a word with him].

“Slack and loose in possession giving it away and Man United can’t get out and get any good possession in and around the final third when your no.9 isn’t able to hold the ball up.”

United fans losing patience with Højlund

United fans have been incredibly patient with Hojlund since his arrival in the summer of 2023 but that is now wearing thin due to his inconsistencies with the basics.

He does have a tough gig up front and United do not create enough chances for any no.9 to properly thrive but he could be doing so much better than he currently is.

The hold-up play against Premier League defenders is amateurish and makes things a lot more difficult for United’s deeper players, who often look to build through that bounce pass into the striker.

Read More: Manchester United’s five things noticed vs Fulham, Rúben Amorim finally given what he’s been missing

Zirkzee has had similar issues to Højlund in front of goal but has shown the ability to link play with his teammates and hold the ball up when it’s played to him.

It seems to be a low bar at Old Trafford right now but Højlund is not reaching it at the moment.

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