Man United’s midfield is a mess without McTominay

The absence of Scott McTominay saw Manchester United’s midfield shortcomings horrendously exposed in the thrilling 3-3 draw with Sheffield United.

Fifty-two minutes into the game at Bramall Lane and Manchester United were in dire straits. Phil Jones had been hooked after a torturous first half, during which he was more likely to be mistaken for a newborn deer on roller-skates than an England international centre-back.

Lys Mousset, a Bournemouth castaway, had just waltzed past Harry Maguire, the most expensive defender in history, on his way to doubling Sheffield’s lead. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer looked on from the sidelines with a furrowed brow, his job feeling less secure with each passing, insipid minute.

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Sheffield spent the entire game pouring through United’s nonexistent midfield. Shorn of Paul Pogba for months, there was already a lack of deep-lying creativity, but in the dying embers of the game against Brighton a fortnight ago, things took a turn for the worse when Scott McTominay suffered an ankle injury.

McTominay – Simple but effective

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The United Academy product has been a revelation this season, emerging as an on-pitch leader, and is one of few to have actively enhanced his stock over the past few months. He provides a level of awareness, and a willingness to take the simple, yet effective options when it comes to ball retention and cycling possession.

Against Sheffield, Andreas Pereira and Fred were outworked, outclassed and outplayed. Pereira, in particular, had a nightmarish performance. This season, he’s been deployed as a high-energy, low-output number ten, but with McTominay out, he was asked to drop back into central midfield.

By the time he was mercifully substituted, he boasted a miserable pass completion rate of 68%, the lowest of any midfielder from either side and the lowest of any United player. With the constant turnover of the ball right in front of them, it’s no wonder Jones and the rest of the defence were all at sea. Only David de Gea prevented them from falling further behind.

Solskjaer will take heart from the way United fought back, and there is genuine talent among the players coming through the youth teams, emphasised by how all three of United’s goals were scored by academy products.

Don’t let it be a distraction

However, this is only a distraction from United playing arguably their worst football of the season, outside of that electrifying three-goal, seven-minute spell. Much of this stems from the continuing flaws in defence, and particularly in midfield.

The lack of depth is unsettling, and McTominay’s importance to the starting lineup cannot be overstated at this point. Without him, there is no composure or focus in the centre of the pitch. Pereira is, unfortunately, a bit-part player. He is unlikely to amount to much beyond squad-depth for a team that genuinely wants to qualify for the Champions League.

United need McTominay back, and United need Pogba back. Until then, fans are going to have to watch the games from behind the couch, as the combination of Pereira and Fred just doesn’t look good enough to cut it in the Premier League.