“THAT WAS THE DIFFERENCE”
Gary Neville has explained how Ralf Rangnick’s new ‘midfielder’ is designed to keep Manchester United from conceding.
The Red Devils beat Crystal Palace 1-0 on Sunday in the German in charge’s opener and Neville praised his former club’s disciplined new look.
Speaking on Sky Monday night, Nev said, “We’ll start with the classic box at the back, McTominay, Fred and the two center-backs.
“No problem.
“It’s very difficult to counterattack if you have these four compact players together.
“The problem was with Man Utd and the reason I stuck to the 60 minutes yesterday was that after not scoring for 30 minutes it is easy for one of those midfielders to get shot to the front.
“It’s easy for one of them to get out of position and leave center-backs exposed.
“And that’s what happened against Aston Villa.
“Having to come back to Old Trafford… that sounds like a huge field. Jamie will tell you from the moment he played there.
“You have to support attacks in football and you have to prevent teams from counterattacking you, otherwise it will undermine your confidence.
“And that was the difference yesterday.
“You had the box so when Man Utd gave the ball into the attacking third they had engaged the players forward.
“But since the ball was given by Fred, those four players are there right away so they can sort Crystal Palace.”