March 4th 2024.
In the highly anticipated Manchester derby at the Etihad Stadium, Jonny Evans made a strong impression before being substituted in the 69th minute. Rio Ferdinand, a former United player, believes that Evans' departure was a crucial moment that disrupted the team's performance and ultimately led to their 3-1 defeat by Manchester City.
The Red Devils got off to a perfect start with Marcus Rashford's stunning 25-yard strike into the top corner of Ederson's goal in the eighth minute. They managed to keep City at bay until the second half, with Erling Haaland missing a golden opportunity to equalize. However, City's Phil Foden had other plans and scored two goals to secure the win for his team, with Haaland adding a third in stoppage time.
This result brought City within one point of league leaders Liverpool, while United remained in sixth place, a whopping 11 points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa. In his post-match conference, United manager Erik ten Hag confirmed that Evans was not fully fit, and 18-year-old Willy Kambwala replaced him shortly before City's winning goal.
Evans, who was starting in a Manchester derby for the first time since 2012, had a solid performance alongside Raphael Varane in defense. According to Ferdinand, his departure had a significant impact on the team, as he was a calm and experienced presence on the pitch. Despite not being the fastest or most mobile, Evans made several crucial blocks and interceptions throughout the game.
Ferdinand also defended ten Hag's tactics, stating that United have tried and failed to go head-to-head with City in the past. Instead, the manager chose to sit back and defend, hoping to catch City on the counter-attack. This strategy paid off with Rashford's stunning goal, and Ferdinand believes that having quick and direct players like Rashford is crucial in these types of games.
Ultimately, United's sixth-place finish and Evans' impressive performance in the derby were unexpected. Ferdinand admits that if someone had told him at the beginning of the season that Evans would be one of the team's top players in a Manchester derby, he wouldn't have believed it. He also praised Evans for his performances against the likes of Haaland, one of the best strikers in the world.
In conclusion, Ferdinand believes that United's defeat against City was a combination of Evans' departure and City's overall dominance. He also commended ten Hag for his tactical approach, which almost resulted in a positive result for United. However, it was ultimately City's superior quality and United's lack of attacking threat that led to their defeat.
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