Ten Hag could be forced to unleash 122-touch Man Utd star over Luke Shaw

Ten Hag could be forced to unleash 122-touch Man Utd star over Luke Shaw

Last weekend, Manchester United picked up a very impressive 2-1 away victory over top-four rivals Aston Villa.

Rasmus Hojlund netted for the fifth consecutive game, taking his overall tally this season to 11 goals across all competitions, while Scott McTominay scored his seventh of the campaign to steal the three points.

This time around, Erik ten Hag’s team will look to win their fourth Premier League game in a row this afternoon, as they travel to Kenilworth Road, where a motivated Luton Town will be waiting.

The reverse fixture was a frustarting and marginal 1-0 win over the Hatters at Old Trafford, but one player stood out on the day. In truth, the Red Devils faithful will hope for a much more convincing performance today.

Victor Lindelof’s performance vs Luton

Over his 251-match United career, Victor Lindelof’s game against Rob Edwards’ side in November was arguably one of his finest, with the Red Devils badge on his chest.

The iceman was positive on the ball throughout the game and ensured that his side remained in control, which is vital when playing against a team that is solely looking for the overturn of possession to attack.

Lindelof’s performance can be summed up via his 8/10 match rating by the Manchester Evening News, however, let’s have a closer look at his stats from the first game against the Hatters in 2023.

Lindelof vs Luton Stats

Stats

Lindelof

Minutes

98

Goals

1

Passes completed

107/113

Touches

122

Possesion lost

6

Clearances

3

Duels won

4/6

Stats via Sofascore

As you can see by the stats, the Sweden defender was simply superb on the ball throughout, having 122 touches and making an incredible 107 passes, which was by far the most on the field.

The fact that the number two was so heavily involved throughout and still only gave the ball away six times proves how much of an influence he had.

The 29-year-old was also switched on defensively and dealt with the Luton attack with composure, as highlighted by his three clearances and four out of six duels won.

To top it off, he scored the only goal of the game after reacting first in the box to smash it home on the penalty spot. Without Lindelof on that day, it’s fair to say that United may not have gotten over the line.

Why Lindelof must start again vs Luton

Despite Lindelof’s incredible game against Luton in November, Ten Hag is still much more likely to opt for a centre-back pairing of Harry Maguire and Raphael Varane, who both stood strong against Villa.

However, there is the possibility that the Swede starts in a left-back role due to the potential absence of Luke Shaw, who Lindelof recently replaced at Villa Park after the break, with the left-back being withdrawn as a precaution.

Although this role is far from tailored to the centre-back’s strengths, he has already featured in it in this campaign when United faced Brentford. During that game, Lindelof was once again excellent in possession, having 94% pass accuracy, making one key pass, and only losing possession six times.

Ten Hag may tweak his in-possession tactic against Luton today, to allow Lindelof to tuck inside as a third centre-back due to the Swede’s lof’s lack of attacking threat as an overlapping full-back.

Indeed, if Shaw is absent, then Lindelof is United’s best replacement, and therefore, the boss must start him against the opponent he has already thrived against this season.