Manchester United had a mission when the team traveled to Spain to face Real Sociedad.
United needed to win by a two-goal margin to finish top of the group ahead of Sociedad in an effort to avoid a horror draw in the next round of the Europa League.
Ten Hag fielded a relatively strong starting XI. Alejandro Garnacho started his second consecutive game in the competition, on the left flank of the attack that also included Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes on the right.
The surprise inclusion was Donny van de Beek, who took 10th position against Christian Eriksen and Casemiro.
Here are three things we learned from Manchester United’s 1-0 win against Real Sociedad.
mixed first half
United’s first 45 minutes were mixed, a stark contrast to recent games in which the team have annihilated teams with their dominance both on and off the ball.
In the first 15-20 minutes, the Spanish opposition were clearly the better team, as United found it difficult to ignore the press.
To highlight United’s struggles in sections of the game, Teb Hag’s men went into the break with less possession compared to Sociedad: 48% to Sociedad’s slightly higher 52%.
Sociedad also had more shots on goal. They recorded five, three of them on target. United in hand he mustered three shots, with only one hitting the target.
Erreala created some fair chances in the early stages of the game and even forced David de Gea into a save, something the Spaniard was up to.
United found it difficult at times to deal with Sociedad’s physicality, but he soon adapted to the game and made himself noticed.
The Reds did well to weather the storm early and got their reward in the 17th minute when Ronaldo put Garnacho in their path with a brilliant pass. The young Argentine made no mistake, deflecting the ball out of reach of the Sociedad goalkeeper who simply had no chance.
While the manager would have been pleased with the prized lead when the half-time whistle blew, he would not have been amused if his players sometimes let Sociedad into the game.
Garnacho is constantly claiming a regular starting spot in the team
Garnacho beyond his goal in the first half proved to be a constant thorn in the rear of the defense of Sociedad.
The League side found it extremely difficult to deal with his fast pace and tricky feet on the left flank, and he was by far United’s most threatening player in the game.
The 19-year-old hardly looked out of place in a team full of world superstars and it is a great credit to him that he was head and shoulders above most of them.
Even defensively, the young man from the academy was immense. He re-executed his defensive responsibilities when needed and lent a helping hand to Luke Shaw when the Englishman needed it.
With the 20-time English champions currently going through an injury crisis in the attacking department with Antony, Anthony Martial and Jadon Sancho all out tonight and possibly against Villa, Garnacho has a legitimate chance to cement his place in the squad.
With Rashford mainly deployed as a striker and with Sancho in appallingly poor form, Garnacho’s dazzling displays may provide a path to the big time.
It says a lot that the coach trusted the player in a high-risk game like tonight’s, that it was essential to win. He shows that he can be relied on to play against the greats of the Premier League and hold his own.
The winger provides a refreshing dimension to United’s attacking phases with his propensity to always take on his man and beat defenders. He excels at this to great effect.
Most fans will agree that Garnacho is set to become a regular fixture in the Ten Hag team, even in the Premier League. Right now, he is knocking on the door!
Incredibly disappointing Van de Beek
Many fans were excited at the prospect of seeing Van de Beek start a game after the player was sidelined with injury for so long.
However, to say that the Dutchman was disappointing is an understatement.
Van de Beek failed to stamp his authority on the game in his favored playmaking role. So it was no surprise when he was the first out instead of Rashford.
At times, the 24-year-old seemed lost and out of the game. Even his moments without the ball for which he is famous were missing against Sociedad.
Forty minutes and Van de Beek has been in No Man’s Land so far. He has had no chemistry with any of the forwards and has barely had the ball. The overall performance of #mufc has been achieved to this point.
— Samuel Luckhurst (@samuelluckhurst) November 3, 2022
Not to be too harsh on Van de Beek, however, he may still be rusty from such an extended spell out of action and need to put together a series of games to get started.
