LONDON — Manchester United needed a late deflected Matheus Cunha shot to rescue a 1-1 draw at Fulham at Craven Cottage on Sunday, a result that has put Michael Carrick's side back under scrutiny for their intensity after they were out-run in west London.
The criticism came from inside and outside the squad. "They put in more energy than us, we cannot accept this," Cunha told Sky Sports after the match, while Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville said: "I've never seen a Man Utd team walk out of possession as much as that." Carrick rejected the suggestion when Cunha's quotes were put to him, saying: "The way we finished the game it didn't look like that for me."
Opta stats show United rank joint-bottom in the Premier League for high-speed runs this season on 1,691, level with Manchester City — though City played with 10 men for the majority of the derby at Old Trafford after Phil Foden was sent off after 23 minutes, which needs to be factored into their figures. At Craven Cottage, United spent 52.98 per cent of their time out of possession walking, their highest figure this season. Their campaign average of 51.13 per cent ranks 17th in the league, and since the start of last season there have been 30 instances of a team walking more out of possession than United did at Fulham, including United's own 54.59 per cent in their 3-0 win at Brighton on the final day of last season.
United covered 110.2km on Sunday, the second-lowest total of the Premier League weekend behind Liverpool's 108.4km at Bournemouth, and ran 6.5km less than Fulham — the second-biggest difference between teams this season when both keep 11 men on the pitch, behind Arsenal out-running Coventry by 6.8km on the opening night. United have also been out-run on distance by Hull, Ipswich and Everton this season, with City the only side they have run further than. They allowed Fulham to start passing sequences on average 36.9m from the United goal, the nearest any team allowed opponents to begin this past weekend, reflecting a deep block. Fulham, by contrast, allowed United to start attacks 43.4m from their goal, the third-highest figure of the round, and Fulham had more build-up attacks — 10+ passing sequences ending in a shot or touch in the opposition box — than any other side this weekend.
Carrick's team did show strong attacking output. Their progress stat, measuring metres gained per passing sequence, was top for the latest round, and their 36 penalty-box entries was the most by any team in any Premier League game this season. United had 29 shots at Fulham, including two against the woodwork in the first half, contributing to a league-leading 113 shots this season and the third-best Expected Goals total of 10.24. Those numbers are overshadowed by taking just five points from their first five games at the start of a campaign where fans had hoped for a kick-on from last season's third-place finish. A failure to beat bottom-of-the-table Tottenham after the international break would make this United's worst-ever start to a Premier League season.