‘Without him…’: Ferdinand says only one Utd player can leave OT ‘with his head held high’ after Spurs performance

Stretty News

Mon, Sep 30, 2024, 9:57 a.m.·1 min read

‘Without him…’: Ferdinand says only one Utd player can leave OT ‘with his head held high’ after Spurs performance

Almost every Manchester United player has seen their performance scrutinised following last night’s inexcusable showing at home to Tottenham Hotspur.

Having now claimed a mere seven points from the 18 available, the Red Devils find themselves in the bottom half of the table in 12th. Truthfully, you’d struggle to see how they could make it to the top half, with the prospect of top-four already looking bleak, given how their closest competitors are faring.

The backline has, expectedly, come into the firing line after being unable to stifle Spurs’ relentless attackers. The visitors recorded an outrageous 24 shots in total, which is the most they’ve managed in any match since the season began – despite playing the likes of Coventry City and Qarabag in recent outings.

Diogo Dalot, in particular, came under fire for his disastrous defending for Brennan Johnson’s third-minute opener, looking entirely uninterested in tracking the forward to the back post, where he was then able to net perhaps his easiest goal when tapping in the ball unmarked from close-range.

Still, Rio Ferdinand believes there’s only one Red who left Old Trafford knowing that he’d done his utmost: Andre Onana.

Ferdinand: Only one player ‘stepped up’

“Do you know how I’ve got to give a shout-out to? He took a lot of stick last season – Onana,” the former Red began during his Rio Reacts YouTube video. “Without him, it’s six or seven today. Onana has been good this season. He’s stepped up, and he’s made some big saves.

“Yes, there’s been the odd thing here and there, but he’s been what you’d want to see. What I expected to see from Onana is what I’m seeing this season.

“He’s the only one today who comes out of the game with any sort of credit – any sort of positivity. He can walk with his head high.”