Manchester United lost to Newcastle United on the road today, continuing their troubling Premier League record.

As a consequence, they dropped down a spot in the standings as the Magpies unexpectedly passed them to take third place. The Red Devils’ place in the top four is now in danger despite their stellar midseason performance.

While Erik ten Hag has had a successful first season in charge, winning one trophy so far, their 7-0 loss to Liverpool last month exposed their lingering weaknesses.

Since then, they have yet to record a league victory, and despite making progress in both the FA Cup and the Europa League, it seems as though they are unable to regain the form that once earned them comparisons to Manchester City and Arsenal.

Today wasn’t a smash-and-grab either, as the hosts avenged their cup final loss from earlier in the season with a commanding performance. They had 22 attempts, six of which found the target, and scored 3.57 expected goals. (via Sofascore). Despite this, the final tally was still only 2-0.

Bruno Fernandes is likely to once again be the target of such scathing remarks due to his notoriety, despite the fact that many Red Devils players are subject to examination.

The Portuguese midfielder, who was frequently seen arguing with the referee, could only manage a shocking 6.4 rating due to being bullied in midfield and only succeeding in 1/6 of his defensive duels.

His defensive compatriot Diogo Dalot, who resumed his decline in form, is perhaps the one who deserves the most criticism.

The way Diogo Dalot performed against Newcastle United.

Prior to the World Cup, the 24-year-old had been in excellent form, scoring against Sheriff and winning the Man of the Match title against West Ham. However, it appears that the 24-year-old has lost his mojo since domestic football resumed.

A meek full-back who provides little offensively or defensively has taken over from his offensive vigor and strong forward runs.

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This culminated in his 6.6 rating today, during which Allan Saint-Maximin terrorized him the entire game by producing five opportunities for goals in the first half alone. Via Sofascore, the defender, who lost 75% of the duels he engaged in and was compelled to commit two penalties, was easily outrun by the Frenchman.

Samuel Luckhurst, a journalist, even posted on Twitter that Saint-Maximin had recently plagued Dalot and Varane and that it was evident whenever he received the ball.

The 69-touch dud’s performance was summed up by fellow writer Brad Cox in the following way: “Dalot just hasn’t been the same since the World Cup. The drop off in performance levels has been incredible.”

Indeed, his moves for the first goal may have best encapsulated that. Before missing a header from the aforementioned winger that fell directly to Joe Willock who scored from close range, the Portuguese was dragged across the box and out of position.

The £25k per week stalwart’s performance today was just the latest in a string of dismal performances, and he is steadily falling behind even Aaron Wan-Bissaka in the standings. In order to ultimately replace a struggling Dalot, there will be hope that the former Crystal Palace player will quickly recover from his illness.

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Regarding The Author

Since graduating, Callum has worked in the football business as a freelance writer for Football FanCast.

After graduating from college in 2022, Callum was immediately given the opportunity to join Football FanCast’s academy program and given a position on the independent opinions team. Since then, he has played this character.

Since then, Callum has also begun creating material for the website’s Facebook page, expanding Football FanCast’s audience.

Callum is a big Everton supporter and has written and appeared on many fan websites discussing the team.