Manchester United suffered Premier League defeat at the City Ground against high-flying Nottingham Forest on Tuesday evening following a two-week international break.
Former United winger Antony Elanga netted the decisive goal after only five minutes, running the length of the pitch to open the scoring from a blistering counter-attack.
The visitors had all the possession and came close to equalising when Diogo Dalot’s header rattled the crossbar, but failed to profit from their control.
It was a good display from the Red Devils overall, and a draw would have been a fair result. However, Ruben Amorim’s men could not find the net on what was ultimately a frustrating evening.
Here are five talking points following a first defeat in five league outings for Manchester United.
Elanga comes back to haunt Manchester United
It was inevitable that a former Old Trafford prospect would bag the winner, wasn’t it?
The Swedish international has enjoyed an excellent season at Forest so far, and that continued as he supplied what proved to be the only goal.
Elanga has bulked up significantly since moving to Trentside and has really kicked on from the raw talent we saw breaking through under the guidance of former interim manager Ralf Rangnick.
Naturally, there will be plenty of revisionism and, no doubt, outrage across social media after this game; some will question why Elanga was sold, but the simple answer is that he needed to be.
The 22-year-old’s career stagnated under Erik ten Hag, and the youngster required a fresh start at a club where he could develop into the player he is now.
Remember, United also needed to sell players to invest in the transfer market themselves, so it was the correct decision.
Garnacho struggles for the Red Devils
After his goal-scoring heroics against Leicester before the break, Alejandro Garnacho would have been keen to keep that good form up on his return to club action.
Unfortunately, it was a night to forget for the young Argentine. He spurned plenty of good shooting opportunities throughout the game.
Critically, the Madrid native needs to improve his decision-making, of which there is no doubt. He is a very talented player, but often takes the wrong option or chooses to shoot rather than pass, much to the frustration of his teammates.
Hopefully, this can be ironed out as he matures and becomes a more well-rounded attacker. The most important thing right now is that he is trying and continuing to work hard for the team.
Ruben Amorim needs more presence up front
One thing lacking in both halves for the away side was a proper presence to occupy the Forest centre-backs.
Joshua Zirkzee led the line from the start before dropping deeper when Rasmus Hojlund was introduced at half-time. Despite both men doing their best, you couldn’t say either posed much of a threat to the home side’s defence.
Harry Maguire’s introduction as an emergency forward is perhaps the biggest endorsement of United’s requirement for another option up top.
Make no mistake about it, Manchester United desperately need a striker in the summer, and the hope has to be that Ineos can deliver one.
Yoro does well on his return from injury
Leny Yoro returned to the starting XI after a few weeks out injured, and he was solid throughout before being replaced by Maguire late on.
The French teenager played at both right and left centre-back, having swapped with Noussair Mazraoui for the second half to try and deal with the pace of Elanga. Yoro did just that.
The former Lille starlet did well against the Swedish attacker and won all his tackles in an impressive showing.
It’s great to see Yoro developing steadily at Old Trafford, and hopefully, this will continue.
Amorim’s system is slowly but surely coming together
Ironically, despite the defeat, this was one of United’s better displays under Amorim.
The Reds played well, particularly in the first half, where they strung some lovely patterns together. Unfortunately, they just couldn’t find an end product.
There were plenty of clear signs that the desired play style was starting to take shape, with the players looking a lot more comfortable in their specific roles on the pitch and executing a clear plan.
Hopefully, the 20-time English champions can keep producing improved performances and build on the progress they have made recently.
United are slowly getting there under Amorim. It won’t be linear, and this season will bring more pain, but it will hopefully all be worth it in time.
What did you think about this Manchester United performance in defeat to Champions League-chasing Nottingham Forest?
Are you seeing enough green shoots to convince you about the Portuguese path we are on, or do you still hold concerns? We want to hear from you, so get involved in the conversation.
Let us know in the comments or across our social channels.
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