MANCHESTER, England — The half of the Manchester United team that was strengthened in the summer played well against AFC Bournemouth. The other half — the one the club hope to put right next summer — didn’t.
The result was a chaotic 4-4 draw at Old Trafford, which showcased everything Ruben Amorim’s side are good at, but also highlighted all the work that still needs to be done. United made a conscious effort to remedy their chronic lack of goals last season by buying some.
But with most of the budget spent on attacking players, it meant that the defensive part of the squad has been overlooked. The end product is a team that is capable of scoring goals, but not keeping them out.
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United have found the net 30 times in the Premier League — the same number as Arsenal and bettered only by Manchester City — while also keeping just one clean sheet, one fewer than 19th-placed Burnley.
“It was a fun game for everyone at home,” said Amorim.
“People enjoy seeing Manchester United this season, but we need to put both things together.
“If you understand a little bit, if you follow the club like I followed the Premier League for so long, you have a duty not just to win the games, but the way is so important for the fans.
“They are desperate to win but also to be inspired. Today was inspiring, but there is also the feeling of frustration from not winning.”
United are hoping to follow up the £200 million investment in their forward line with a similar outlay on at least one central midfielder and a couple of wing backs. Until they get a chance to open the checkbook — possibly in January but more likely next summer — Amorim is left to work with a lopsided group.
At times, summer signings Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo, along with Bruno Fernandes, Amad Diallo and Mason Mount, looked scintillating going forward.
United peppered Bournemouth goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic’s goal with 12 shots inside the first 30 minutes and managed 17 by halftime. Amad and Fernandes both scored either side of a Casemiro header and when Cunha added his name to the scoresheet in the 79th minute, it put United in front for the third time.
It still wasn’t enough to secure all three points and Bournemouth, who arrived at Old Trafford winless in six games and without a goal in more than four hours, found a late equalizer through substitute Junior Kroupi. Earlier, Antoine Semenyo scored his first goal since October. That was before Evanilson’s first goal since August.
After watching their team score three goals at Old Trafford in each of the last two seasons, at one point the Bournemouth fans tucked in the corner of the stadium began singing “Man United, it’s happened again.”
“It’s really difficult to explain,” said Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola.
“A lot of ups and downs. United were much better than us for 20 minutes. Overall, I’m happy apart from that 20 minutes.
“They were punishing us with Amad and Mbeumo. We’ve scored four and conceded four. We needed some players on the scoresheet and it’s good for their confidence.”
It would have been even worse for Amorim — who tinkered with his 3-4-3 system for the first time to create a hybrid formation which at times looked like 4-4-2 — if United goalkeeper Senne Lammens hadn’t pulled off a fantastic save from David Brooks in stoppage time. It left the home fans who streamed out at the final whistle in near-stunned silence, not quite knowing what to make of it all.
Are United closer to the team that has lost just one of their last 10 games, or is two wins from six a more accurate way to view it?
Both, of course, are true. Afterwards, Amorim stopped short of saying he wants the investment made in the attack last summer to be poured into the midfield and defense ahead of next season, but the inference was there nonetheless.
“We are lacking quality when we defend our goal,” said the Portuguese coach.
“It’s something we need to address. It is different when you suffer so many goals and the opponent does not have what we create.
“I think we have talent at the back and quality players, we just have to be better at defending. We took care of the offence. We have the characteristics, we just need to work together.”
The worry for Amorim now is that it’s his attack — the one part of his team that is functioning — which will be hit hardest when the Africa Cup of Nations begins later this month. Mbeumo and Amad — perhaps United’s best two players — will now join up with Cameroon and Ivory Coast, respectively, and could miss a month if they reach the final on Jan. 18. Noussair Mazraoui has already joined up with Morocco.
It leaves the United boss to head to Aston Villa, the Premier League’s most in-form team, with the best parts of his squad ripped out. Casemiro, who picked up his fifth yellow card of the season, will also miss out. If there were holes in Amorim’s team against Bournemouth, there are set to be even more at Villa Park on Sunday.
Until the club can implement the next phase of its recruitment plan, he must make the best of what he’s got.
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