8 shot attempts vs Porto: £42m United star simply has to start vs Aston Villa, Erik ten Hag has no excuses – opinion | OneFootball

Manchester United take on Aston Villa in Sunday’s Premier League game at Villa Park.

The Red Devils are winless in the last four outings in all competitions and they face another stern challenge against Villa, who beat Bayern Munich in the Champions League in midweek.

Manager Erik ten Hag is bound to make some changes from the 3-3 Europa League draw against Porto and we believe Alejandro Garnacho should be one of the first names in the line-up.

Garnacho has been in-and-out of the starting plans of Ten Hag this term. The Dutchman has often preferred to play Marcus Rashford on the left wing with Amad Diallo on the opposite end.

We saw something similar at the Estadio do Dragao last night. The manager made a surprise decision to substitute Rashford for Garnacho at the break despite him being the best player versus Porto.

When asked for a reason, Ten Hag said that he wanted to rotate his options and highlighted that Garnacho was his ‘best player‘ against Tottenham Hotspur and in many other games.

In our view, the 54-year-old should stick with his best wide attacking combination in Rashford and Garnacho on Sunday. Amad Diallo should instead drop to the bench instead.

Diallo completed 100 percent of his passes against Porto yesterday with three chances created. However, he was hardly involved in the final third with just one shot which was blocked.

The Ivorian had only two touches in the opposition box. In comparison, Garnacho had eight attempts on goal last night with two on target, two off target and four of them blocked.

The £42 million-rated star had eight touches in the opposition box, same as Rashford. The Argentine also indirectly contributed to the late equaliser in stoppage time.

His long-range shot was saved by Diogo Costa, but the resultant corner led to Harry Maguire’s goal.

We believe United need risk-takers in the final third. Rashford should be an assured starter on the left wing on Sunday after contributing a goal and an assist against Porto.

Garnacho did not find the back of the net, but he showed the intention to do so which Diallo lacked. It seems a no-brainer decision to play him on the right side of the attack.

United have looked defensively vulnerable during the early part of the campaign. Their best chance of winning at Villa Park could be to outscore the Villans which they did last season.

The Red Devils came from two goals down to beat Villa 3-2 at Old Trafford. Garnacho was the stand-out player with a brace. United won 2-1 at Villa Park after a late Scott McTominay winner.

Sunday’s game appears a must-win for United. The club are already six points adrift of the top four. Anything other than a victory could lead to Ten Hag’s potential sacking.

Stats from Transfermarkt.com & Fotmob.com