Despite Erik ten Hag’s attempts to adjust the lineup and playing style, MU could only manage a 1-1 draw against Fenerbahce. With three consecutive winless matches in the Europa League, MU is struggling significantly in the second-tier European competition.
Specifically, MU has won just one match in the past 19 months in European competitions, and that rare victory was against FC Copenhagen in November last year (4-3), with Andre Onana playing the hero by saving a last-minute penalty.
This morning, Onana again had to work hard to keep MU in the game, making two excellent saves against dangerous shots from Youssef En-Nesryi in the first half. Additionally, referee Clement Turpin was lenient with MU, overlooking a penalty after Manuel Ugarte’s rough tackle on Bright Osayi-Samuel in the box.
MU needed many factors to escape Istanbul with a point, from Onana’s impressive performance to the referee’s controversial decisions and the wastefulness of Fenerbahce’s attack. After three matches in the Europa League, MU is still searching for their first victory. Their struggles against Fenerbahce (1-1) reflect similar difficulties faced against Twente (1-1) and Porto (3-3).
MU fans must feel a pang of envy when looking at their compatriots, Chelsea. Despite fielding a B-team, Chelsea has been thriving in the Conference League, winning impressively against Panathinaikos (4-1) and Gent (4-2). Meanwhile, MU has shown a lackluster performance in the Europa League, currently sitting at 21st out of 36 on the league table.
In reality, Ten Hag has been trying to find new energy for MU. The Dutch coach surprisingly moved Noussair Mazraoui to the number 10 position, a role he had previously utilized for the Moroccan player during their time together at Ajax. Ten Hag hoped that Mazraoui, with his silky skills, could bring a fresh breath of life to the team.
Ten Hag’s experiment wasn’t entirely a failure. Mazraoui provided a delicate touch for Joshua Zirkzee, who set up Christian Eriksen to score against Fenerbahce. However, that was the only significant moment from Mazraoui.
For most of the match, Mazraoui barely touched the ball and lacked connection with his teammates. Clearly, the 26-year-old right-back was struggling to adapt to his unfamiliar role. This forced Ten Hag to bring on Casemiro in the 55th minute to strengthen the midfield and move Mazraoui back to left-back, leading to improved performance from MU after this change.
Moving Mazraoui to the number 10 role was a bold decision by Ten Hag, indicating that the MU coach is willing to do whatever it takes to find momentum for the play, or in other words, to fight for his job. However, the perennial issue for Ten Hag and MU is a lack of consistency. When they excel in one area, they falter in another. They can play well at times but poorly at others.
Although Ten Hag managed to push Mazraoui into the midfield, Zirkzee was still ineffective in attack. Despite providing an assist for Eriksen, the Dutch striker failed to create any dangerous threats toward the opponent’s goal. In two favorable counterattacking situations for MU, Zirkzee ruined them with inaccurate long passes. The former Bologna player ran a lot but did not integrate into the system.
The bright spots for MU in the draw against Fenerbahce were Onana’s good form and Manuel Ugarte’s performance. However, this does not guarantee they will play well in their upcoming match against West Ham on Sunday. With a team that has not won 6 out of their last 7 matches across all competitions, consistency is a luxury. Ten Hag likely views using Mazraoui in the number 10 position as a last resort. What the Dutch coach is doing seems more like patchwork and fails to create any overall momentum for MU.