David de Gea blames ‘crazy’ schedule for Man Utd wobble following goalless draw with Southampton
- Red Devils dropped points in last two
- Failed to score in either game
- Have been competing on multiple fronts
WHAT HAPPENED? The Red Devils remain third in the English top-flight table, but they have dropped points without scoring in their last two fixtures. A 7-0 defeat at arch-rivals Liverpool set all kinds of unwanted records, while a disappointing 0-0 draw at home to Southampton saw Erik ten Hag’s side lose talismanic midfielder Casemiro to a four-game ban following his second red card of the season.
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WHAT THEY SAID: United have also been in Carabao Cup, FA Cup and Europa League action over recent weeks, with De Gea telling MUTV of the demands being placed on a star-studded squad: “It is crazy the amount of games we are playing. It is tough. It looks simple, but it is very tough to play every two or three days. Players are running a lot. We don’t have much time to recover. But everyone is trying their best. You can see in every game we fight and we try our best. Of course, some games like today, you miss one player, players are going to get tired and you can drop some points. But let’s keep going, we have two more big games next week.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: United have two more fixtures to take in before hitting the international break – the second leg of a Europa League last-16 encounter with Real Betis that they currently lead 4-1 on aggregate and an FA Cup quarter-final clash with Fulham at Old Trafford.
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DID YOU KNOW? This was Manchester United’s 32nd Premier League 0-0 draw since Alex Ferguson left the club in 2013, now the most of any side in the competition since the start of 2013-14 (Crystal Palace, 31).
WHAT NEXT? De Gea will be happy to have kept a clean sheet against Southampton, having already broken all-time records for shutouts in United’s goal this season, but will be hoping to see those at the opposite end of the field start to offer a little more in the coming weeks.