Premier League 2019-20: 3 reasons behind Manchester United's 0-1 defeat against Bournemouth

3. Inability to play enough crosses into the box

Mason Greenwood

United could not play enough crosses into the penalty box in order to test the Bournemouth defence. Daniel James started the match in a lively fashion and managed to play a few crosses from the right flank during the opening 20 minutes of the match. However, he did not do much thereafter, and had to be taken off in the second half.

Meanwhile United’s full backs could not go into overlaps regularly, and preferred to stay in their own half for a majority of the match. Aaron Wan-Bissaka struggled to go ahead, and played the majority of the match as a de facto third centre-back. He was also mainly responsible for the Bournemouth goal, as he failed to mark his man inside the penalty box.

During the last 15 minutes of the match, McTominay played as the left-back and Ashley Young as the right-back. Jesse Lingard, Mason Greenwood and Brandon Williams were introduced in a desperate move by Solskjaer, but to no avail.

The last 10-15 minutes of the match also saw centre-back Harry Maguire venturing forward repeatedly in order to put his aerial prowess to good use. Greenwood also managed to hit the woodwork from a cross, but could not ensure a point for the Red Devils.