Kevin Doyle and Shay Given have given their thoughts on Manchester United after yet another loss for Erik ten Hag’s team.
Things were looking good for the Red Devils, when the brilliant Rasmus Hojlund fired them into a 2-1 lead in their Champions League second round group game against Turkish side Galatasaray S.K.
The 20-year-old Danish striker scored two goals, one with the head and one with a clever dink after a lightning run, and suddenly the mood was changing at Old Trafford.
But United didn’t hold onto their lead for long.
Muhammed Kerem Akturkoglu levelled things up for Gala less than four minutes later with a well-worked team goal and they were awarded a penalty shortly afterwards, with goalkeeper Andre Onana firmly at fault.
The former Inter Milan shot-stopper sold Casemiro short with a poor pass which forced the Brazilian to give away a penalty, clocking up his second yellow card of the night in the process.
The Cameroonian’s blushes were initially spared when Mauro Icardi blasted the penalty wide but the reprieve didn’t last long.
The same Argentine striker scored the winner moments later having been played in through the gaping hole left by Casemiro’s absence. United lost 3-2 and are now bottom of their group of four on zero points after two games.
On RTÉ, former Ireland internationals Given and Doyle discussed Onana’s rocky start to life at Old Trafford.
“I spoke highly about him, about how good he is with the ball at his feet, but that’s a horrendous pass,” said Given, “there’s no getting away from that. He’s put his team under pressure.”
“You spent 50 million on him from Inter Milan. He looked nervy throughout the game, a cross came in that he didn’t deal with well. He parried it out and got away with it.”
Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana finds himself trending on X tonight for all the wrong reasons. Kevin Doyle and Shay Given discuss his struggles.
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Kevin Doyle, meanwhile, compared Onana to Italian net-minder Massimo Taibi, who was signed for United under Alex Ferguson for 4.5 million in 1999. Taibi made some mistakes in his early games, and ended up just playing four games for the club.
“You remember when Alex Ferguson signed Massimo Taibi, I don’t want to be comparing him to that,” said the Wexford man, “But they spent a lot of money comparatively at the time for him, but Ferguson just pulled the plug after a couple of games.”
“That was it. That was the end of it. And if he keeps that up. That’s two or three mistakes. He needs to sort himself out and soon.”
Given, meanwhile, wondered about a certain David De Gea who at the minute doesn’t have a club.
“I wonder how many Man United fans would say I’d take David De Gea all day long ahead of him. Maybe it’s too early to say that.
“He wasn’t brilliant with the ball at his feet so that sending off wouldn’t have happened because he’d have kicked it up the pitch. Then I think David De Gea would more saves.”
Doyle and Given were also critical of other United players with former Real Madrid duo Casemiro and Raphael Varane singled out in particular. Doyle says that, on the evidence of Tuesday night, neither of them looked like they could move properly.
“For the second goal, Casemiro was going backwards.
“He loses five yards. You talk about the difference things that are wrong with United. Casemiro reads that, but he doesn’t have the legs to get back.
“You’ve got a player there, they’ve spent millions on him, he’s on a long contract (until 2026) and they’re going to be stuck with him, even though it’s plain to see that his legs aren’t what they used to be.”
“I thought he did fine last season, but maybe that’s the reason Madrid got rid of him. He’s not able to sprint. He’s not able to make up the ground. Watch his legs move, he’s just not able to.”
“Varane to me, couldn’t move tonight either,” concluded Doyle.
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