dpCarrick facing Man Utd conundrumpublished at 13:14 BST
Leeds v Man Utd (14:00 BST)
Matt Jones
BBC Sport journalist
Manchester United
could do without a visit to what will be a white-hot Elland Road. Their six points after six
games is their lowest tally in the top flight since the 1986-87 season, when they had four points.
The
Red Devils have been accused of a lack of physicality in their opening games. That has been
evident in the latter stages of matches, with Manchester United conceding a joint league high four goals in
the last 10 minutes of games.
Midfield
has been a particular area of concern. While Kobbie Mainoo and Youri Tielemans rank
highly in terms of possession won in the middle third, there are clearly structural issues that have
not been resolved.
In
terms of the percentage of high intensity pressures and counter pressures in the middle third, Manchester United rank 17th and 18th respectively.
The Red Devils have also spent a higher proportion of their
time off the ball in a high block than any other team in the Premier League, potentially
leaving too much space for their midfielders to cover.
At
the sharp end of the pitch, there is a sense that the forwards should have done more with the
opportunities they have had, too.
Going
into the weekend fixtures, Manchester United have had the most shots (and the most touches in
the opposition box) of any team.
However, they are currently joint last in terms of xG per
shot, which sits at a lowly 0.08, and their conversion rate of 6.45% is better than that of only two
teams.
