Turnbach Turns the Tide, Maguire Praises “Great possession + solid defense…had the game I wanted”

Manchester United manager Eric Mourinho was moody after the win. However, he did praise the performance of returning defender Harry Maguire.

United earned a 2-1 win away to Sheffield United in the ninth round of the 2023/24 English Premier League on Sunday (Sept. 22). It was an away win at Sheffield United’s home ground, Bramall Lane. Turnbach was happy with the three valuable points away from home.

“In the first half we overdid it because we wanted to dominate the game, but after halftime we regrouped and responded very well in the second half,” he said in his post-match press conference.

United took the lead in the 28th minute through Scottish international Scott McTominay, but soon conceded a penalty to Sheffield Wednesday’s Oliver McBurnie to level the score at 1-1. The penalty was awarded for a handball in the penalty box committed by McTominay.토스카지노 주소

The second half wasn’t any easier for United. In the 32nd minute of the second half, after Sheffield Wednesday and United had exchanged attacks, United side-back Diogo Dalot was called into action. After receiving a clever pass from Victor Lindelof, Dalot found the back of the Sheffield net with a right-footed mid-range shot from outside the box. Dahlo’s goal helped United come from behind to take all three points at 2-1.

“The first half wasn’t up to our standards,” said Turnbach, “we had just come back from an A-match and you could tell we were tired.” “We weren’t very organized,” he said of his team’s first-half performance.

The second half was different. “We tried to make changes after halftime,” Turnbach said, “we tried to be more calm and pass the ball around, and we tried to avoid direct passes.”

According to soccer statistics platform Footmob, Turnbach’s changes were effective. In a first half that saw a lot of passing attempts to get deeper into the box, United had 44% of the possession and Sheffield United had 56%. In the second half, United had 69% possession and tried to create more attacking opportunities.

United’s passing success rate also increased slightly, from 79% in the first half to 82% in the second. This suggests that Mourinho’s side were able to take their foot off the gas and work more on organizing their play, rather than trying to play in a rush.

In this game, England international defender Maguire, who had been targeted for release, played the full 90 minutes. Mourinho credited Maguire for the win. Turnbach had been virtually berating Maguire since last winter, stripping him of his captain’s armband this summer and making him eligible for release.

But with Lisandro Martinez injured and Raphael Varane out of form, he turned to Maguire, who has been a consistent performer for the England national team of late.

“He did exactly what we wanted him to do,” he said, “he got out of position and tried to keep possession, and he was also solid defensively.” According to Footmob, Maguire completed 76 passes in the game, the most of any player for Sheffield Wednesday and Manchester United combined. He also had eight possession recoveries, showing his ‘iron wall’ qualities. This is the kind of buildup that Mourinho relies on from the back line.

Meanwhile, Manchester United legend Sir Bobby Charlton, one of the greatest strikers in England’s history, died before the game. Turnbach said he was “deeply affected” by the passing of the legend, who spent 17 seasons in the United first team, starting in the club’s youth ranks. “He won a lot of trophies and games, but the Charlton I met was very humble,” he said, adding that it was a “huge loss for the world of football.”

He also said the loss has affected the way the team plays. “The players wanted to send Bobby Charlton off with a win,” Mourinho said, “and it gave us even more motivation (to win).”

The win helped United climb out of the bottom 10. Sitting in eighth place with 15 points, the win gives the Red Devils hope of bouncing back. The Red Devils return home to face FC Copenhagen of Denmark in the third round of the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League group stage on Oct. 25.