United concede 16 shots per game...it cannot go on like this

ANDY BURNHAM rose from his seat and turned the tables by asking a question of his inquisitors. ‘So,’ said the Mayor of Greater Manchester and avid Everton fan. ‘Any predictions?’ Burnham had just finished his day job by selling the dream of a brand new Old Trafford, and was about to get the weekend started by watching his team from the directors’ box. There’s very little you can predict about Manchester United these days, but the statistics suggested that two things were likely to happen once Burnham took his seat alongside the other VIPs here. Firstly, United would beat Everton. It had happened 40 times before in the Premier League, and victory No 41 — courtesy of first-half penalties from Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford awarded for careless fouls on Alejandro Garnacho — set a new record between two clubs in the competition. Secondly, United would face an inordinate amount of shots on goal. It has been a worrying trend this season and one that shows no sign of changing with 10 league games to go. And so Everton accepted an invitation to have pot-shots at Andre Onana’s goal, out-firing United 23-15 in a rather strange encounter. They became the fifth team in six league games to get into the 20s against United, who have now faced 467 attempts this season at an average of 16.68 per game. Only West Ham and Sheffield United are more exposed. The most was 34 in December at Anfield in a game that somehow ended goalless against Liverpool, who might not be quite so wasteful in next weekend’s FA Cup sixth round. Afterwards the conversation with Erik ten Hag turned to expected goals — that most curious of modern stats known as xG — and what he felt was the low quality of Everton’s chances. ‘If you see their xG is not that high and ours is much higher,’ said the United manager. ‘We have players who feel comfortable to defend low.’ This cannot be the way forward. Ten Hag was meant to turn United into a team that can control games not ride their luck like this. It is why the Dutchman has so little margin for error to secure the Champions League qualification that could be vital to his job prospects. On a day when Burnham eulogised about the benefits of building a new Old Trafford, United demonstrated once again why there is a more pressing need to construct a team from front to back that does not give up so many chances. This win was due just as much to Everton’s wasteful attacking as it was to United’s defending. Sean Dyche was left wondering how his team didn’t score as a winless run in the league stretched to 11 games. ‘I’ve never had that many chances away here, never had that much of the ball, never dominated the front third of the pitch that many times — 45 clean entries into the box. Those are heavy stats,’ said the Everton manager. MAN UTD (4-2-3-1): Onana 7; Dalot 6.5, Varane 7, Evans 6.5 (Kambwala 89min), Lindelof 6; Casemiro 5, Mainoo 6 (Amrabat 79); GARNACHO 8 (Antony 83), McTominay 6, Rashford 7; Fernandes 7. Scorers: Fernandes 12 (pen), Rashford 36 (pen). Booked: McTominay. Manager: Erik ten Hag 7 EVERTON (4-2-3-1): Pickford 6; Godfrey 4.5, Tarkowski 5, Branthwaite 7, Mykolenko 6 (Chermiti 88); Garner 6 (Young 75, 6), Onana 5.5; Harrison 6.5 (Dobbin 61, 6.5), Doucoure 5 (Gomes 61, 6), McNeil 7; Beto 6 (Calvert-Lewin 61, 6). Booked: Doucoure, Onana. Manager: Sean Dyche 6. Referee: Simon Hooper 7. Attendance: 73,601.