Manchester United succumbed to a 3-4 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur away from home on Thursday to crash out of the Carabao Cup at the quarter-final stage.
Ruben Amorim made five changes to the team including a first start under him for backup goalkeeper Altay Bayindir and it proved to be the decisive call that cost his team a spot in the last four.
It was United who enjoyed the better chances in the first half but they trailed at the back after the Turkish keeper palmed away a shot from distance into the path of Dominic Solanke who expertly finished off the post.
The hosts scored a quickfire double at the start of the second half with Lisandro Martinez at fault for both goals. The Argentine tried a cute flick inside the box for the second and was punished while he failed to push up and played Dejan Kulusevski onside.
Bayindir was poor
United mounted a great comeback thanks to huge errors from the Spurs keeper at the other end but a contentious fourth saw Heung Min Son score direct from a corner.
The Turkish keeper was fouled as he tried to jump but the referee did not spot anything and with no VAR, the decision was not overturned. It was poor officiating but the goalie jumped too late and paid the price in the end.
Hindsight is a great gift but looking back, Amorim should have selected a stronger starting lineup instead of placing his trust in many fringe players.
The Turkish international should not have started a game of this magnitude having not played the easier Europa League ties before this game.
His lack of minutes meant he was low on confidence and it showed throughout the game. Andre Onana has been error-prone himself but he has the character to deal with setbacks unlike the former Fenerbahce star.
Antony was a non-existent threat up top while Victor Lindelof’s first start in a long time ended in the Swede departing within the first half due to injury.
This might have been the Portuguese tactician’s first major blunder since taking over but he will have learned a lot about how weak the squad really is.
As was Licha
One area which will need the coach’s attention is on the left with Diogo Dalot struggling to create despite having acres of space while the performance of Martinez was a concern yet again.
The Argentine was at fault against Nottingham Forest in the Premier League and once again failed to produce the goods at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Amorim will have expected a lot more from his players after the stunning Manchester derby win but he will learn that asking for consistency from this players is a huge ask.
Certain players lack the mentality to succeed while the squad depth is just not good enough. The defeat means the Red Devils have fluffed their lines at winning a trophy. Now the focus has to shift back to the league.
Feature image Alex Pantling via Getty Images
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Ayantan Chowdhury
Ayantan has worked for 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites but his heart was always set on writing about his favourite club. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25
