Barcelona 3-0 Manchester United: 5 Men who cost United the game

#4 Jesse Lingard

FC Barcelona v Manchester United - UEFA Champions League Quarter Final: Second Leg

Jesse Lingard’s inclusion in the team was bizarre, especially since the Englishman had failed to impress in recent weeks. Lingard had been extremely poor in last weekend’s tie against West Ham as well, and as such, he was expected to stay on the bench. Lukaku would have been the better choice, but Solskjaer had a tactical plan in mind for Lingard, which is why he was preferred.

The Norwegian deployed the Englishman as a false 9 and expected him to work on Busquets and Arthur. In truth, Lingard was largely a spectator who displayed the difference in quality between the two teams. The Englishman had no effect going forward and failed to stop Arthur or Busquets from dictating the game. His passing was poor and even when he drifted to the right, the Englishman could hardly impact the game.

It was clear that Lukaku would have been the better choice and Lingard proved that with his performance on the night.