Manchester United were knocked out of the Europa League quarter-finals after losing 3-0 (5-2 on aggregate) to Sevilla on Thursday night and Chris Sutton has slammed the Red Devils for their poor performance.
It was a dreadful display from Erik ten Hag’s side – they created almost nothing going forward and were below par in every department. Sutton wrote on Twitter that they have “gotten what they deserved”.
On a night when United needed to stay solid at the back, they made two terrible mistakes in defence and gifted Sevilla two goals. David de Gea played out a poor pass from the back, and Harry Maguire made an awful error, as Man United turned out to be the architect of their own downfall.
Sutton rightly said that De Gea and Maguire will take the fair share of the blame, but the bitter “truth” lies in the fact that Sevilla – the six-time winner of this competition – “pummelled” United in every department on the night.
The La Liga club have been very poor this season, lying 13th in the table, but they managed to raise their standards when it really mattered.
Sutton wrote: “Maguire and De Gea will take a fair share of the blame and rightly so but the truth is Sevilla 13th in La Liga have absolutely pummelled Manchester United tonight in every department. Manchester United have gotten what they deserved.”
Maguire and De Gea will take a fair share of the blame and rightly so but the truth is Sevilla 13th in La Liga have absolutely pummelled Manchester United tonight in every department … Manchester United have gotten what they deserved.
— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) April 20, 2023
Maguire – set for summer exit?
In the first leg at Old Trafford, Maguire scored an own goal and here again, he made a terrible blunder at the back. Of course, the pass from De Gea was poor, but for a player of Maguire’s experience and caliber, he should have done better than play a pass off Erik Lamela, just two yards in front of him.
The ball fell to Youssef En-Nesyri who finished past De Gea. In the absence of Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez, it was expected that the United skipper will stand up and guide his team to the semi-final, but he has been below par once again. His defensive partner, Victor Lindelof, wasn’t brilliant either.
There are suggestions that both Maguire and Lindelof could be sold in the summer, and performances like these will only push them towards the exit door. The same could be said of De Gea – who’s contract is up at the end of the season.
This was a first of a series of potentially season-defining games for United. They face Brighton at Wembley in the FA Cup semi-finals on Sunday followed by a crucial Premier League game against Tottenham Hotspur.
