Manchester United 1-0 Kristiansund: Three Red Devils who failed to impress in narrow win

Nemanja Matic's form has been worrying so far.

Manchester United managed to maintain their pre-season winning streak thanks to to a narrow 1-0 win against Norwegian side Kristiansund on Tuesday. The Red Devils dominated the game as expected, recording 74 percent possession. However, Kristiansund proved that they are Eliteserien's best defensive team.

The Norwegian outfit were able to thwart United's relentless attacks, despite the Red Devils bombarding them with 33 shots. United center back Phil Jones even actively helped his team in attack and managed a couple of dangerous headers. Jesse Lingard also had several excellent chances to score but was unable to bag one in the end.

Kristiansund had a decent chance to score in the second half after defending for most of the first. Unfortunately, Sondre Sorli nodded wide and did not manage to test the United keeper. Several United players were able to impress. However, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer would still need to asses the frailties of some of his men following the hard-fought win.

Here, we will take a look at three United players who will need to step up in the next game as regular season looms in the horizon.

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Daniel James

Overall, the former Swansea City starlet, Daniel James, has impressed since joining the Red Devils. However, he still needs to be more clinical in front of goal. James has failed to score even once in the pre-season so far.

The Welshman had somewhat mixed performance against Kristiansund. His pace gave Kristiansund's defenders nightmares at times. He was also able to create several chances for his teammates.

Unfortunately, he failed to finish any of the chances that fell to him, although he had plenty of opportunities to score. Some of his crosses were a little wayward too. He and Jesse Lingard was the main reason for United's struggle in the attack. Nevertheless, James was arguably the better performer among United's flops in this game.

The 21-year-old can be considered a raw gem who United need to polish. He has no Premier League experience but can surely develop into one of the best wingers, if he manages to address his goal-scoring problem.

Despite the winning run, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will still be worried about a couple of players.

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Marcos Rojo

The Argentinian defender played just 211 minutes in the Premier League last season. Manchester United bought him for a considerable €20 million after Marcos Rojo's impressive display in the 2014 World Cup. Sadly, the 29-year-old has never been able to justify his price since. Rojo managed to start 20 league games in his debut United season.

Axel Tuanzebe had a better game than Rojo.

However, his reputation has gradually declined due to injuries and defensive mistakes. He was unable to start ahead of Phil Jones, Chris Smalling and Eric Bailly last season. Rojo has also failed to deliver convincing performances in the pre-season so far. He was overshadowed by Axel Tuanzebe after coming as a substitute in the Kristiansund game.

The former Sporting star had a decent 30 minutes to prove himself. However, the 29-year-old wasted the chance by failing to make any visible impact throughout the match.

Rojo unnecessarily gave the ball away at times and made no significant defensive contribution. United have rumored to want to offload the Argentinian player several times, and Rojo's woeful pre-season will only further convince the club to dump him.

Rojo has fallen behind in the pecking order to players like Phil Jones.

Nemanja Matic

Manchester United splashed more than €40 million to hijack the Serbian from Chelsea. However, Nemanja Matic's brilliance has not lasted last long at United. The 31-year-old had an impressive debut season with United, making 35 starting appearances and led the team to a second-place finish.

Unfortunately, critics have relentlessly slammed the midfielder since United's abysmal 2018/19 season. He was well off the pace and gave the ball at times in this game. His downward trend has continued in United pre-season games which will be a cause for concern for the coach and the medio was ponderous and overly wasteful in possession against Kristiansund.

Former coach Jose Mourinho had brought Matic to Old Trafford.

He looked like the shadow of his former self and was unable to get into the game. Scott McTominay pretty much outshined him throughout the match. Thus, Matic will surely lose his place to the 22-year-old if this situation persists. The former Chelsea star has now past his 30, and it could be no surprise if United want to offload him even before the new season begins.

Scott McTominay had a better game than the Serbian and could become an automatic first-team choice.

Edited by S Chowdhury