Manchester United's performance in the 1-1 draw against Fulham continues to raise questions about the intensity of the match, although attacking statistics show that Michael Carrick's team still has many opportunities.
Matheus Cunha frankly admitted after the match: "They tried harder than us. This is unacceptable". Gary Neville also criticized Man United's ability to put pressure and said he had never seen the "Red Devils" lose the ball so much.
Data from Opta partly explains the above comments. Man United is currently at the bottom of the Premier League in terms of acceleration times, with 1,691 times. This number is equal to Manchester City, but it needs to be placed in the context of Phil Foden being sent off after only 23 minutes in the Manchester derby.
The problem is also reflected in the time Man United players walk without the ball. At Craven Cottage, they spend 52.98% of their playing time in this state. Although 7 other teams have higher rates in the current season, this is still Man United's highest level since the beginning of the season.
Man United also only moved a total of 110.2km in the match against Fulham, the second lowest among the teams to play last weekend. Fulham moved more than their opponent by 6.5km, the second largest distance between the two teams in the Premier League this season in a match where both played in 11s.
Man United were even surpassed by Hull, Ipswich and Everton in terms of total distance traveled. Man City was the only team that Man United ran more, but that match was affected by Foden's early red card.
These numbers are even more noteworthy as Man United is not performing as expected. This team only won 5 points after 5 Premier League rounds, while Carrick is expected to help the club continue to improve after finishing third last season.
However, the story is not entirely negative. Attack statistics show that Man United still has the ability to put the ball forward and put pressure on the opponent's goal.
Fulham allowed the "Red Devils" to start attacks in an average position 43.4m from the goal. Man United also had 36 times putting the ball into the opponent's penalty area, the most in a Premier League match this season. They launched 29 shots, including two times hitting the woodwork.
After 5 rounds, Man United has 113 shots, the most in the league, with a expected goal index of 10.24, ranking third in the Premier League.
Carrick also rejected the opinion that the team had fitness problems: "The way we finished the match did not show that.
But this is a difficult problem for Carrick. Man United still has opportunities and possesses positive attacking statistics, but the effectiveness is not commensurate with the volume of activity. The intensity when without the ball becomes a question mark.
After the international break, Man United will meet Tottenham. The result of this match could heat up debates about Carrick's performance and his players, especially if they cannot improve both their mobility and efficiency on the field.
