Paul Merson predictions: ’Petrified’ Manchester United miss Paul Pogba
MANCHESTER UNITED were “petrified” of Manchester City in the Manchester derby.
That is according to Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson.
Needing a win to claw back the gap on the leaders, Manchester United gifted two goals from set-pieces and struggled to hurt City as they lost 2-1.
The home side had just 35 per cent of possession with a pass accuracy of 68 per cent as Pep Guardiola’s side bossed proceedings.
United were without Paul Pogba, who was serving the first of a three-game suspension, and it showed as Nemanja Matic and Ander Herrera struggled to stop David Silva and Kevin de Bruyne.
Reuters
They miss Paul Pogba, of course, but when I watched it against City, I was just thinking 'why aren't you having a go?' United looked petrified
United are now 11 points behind City in the league table and host Bournemouth on Wednesday at Old Trafford.
And though Merson expects United to win, he believes Pogba’s absence doesn’t justify their lack of attacking threat.
He said: “On paper this looks easy for United, but I watched them against Brighton and they struggled.
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“They miss Paul Pogba, of course, but when I watched it against City, I was just thinking 'why aren't you having a go?' United looked petrified.
“There are ways of losing, and if I was a United fan, I would want to see more.
“Bournemouth might get a bit of a backlash and won't have enough to challenge them."
