Erik ten Hag’s unorthodox experiment paid off against Tottenham, here’s why he did it

Add as preferred source on Google

Manchester United drew 2-2 with Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League.

There were positives to take out of the game for the Red Devils. Rasmus Hojlund scored a beauty, Marcus Rashford was among the goals again and Lisandro Martinez returned from injury.

Despite this – it was a frustrating result for United. They led twice at Old Trafford against Ange Postecoglou’s side, so will be gutted they didn’t hold on for all three points.

Despite the two goals, United also defended well against what was an extremely pacey attack.

• READ MORE: Confirmed Manchester United transfer deals for January 2024, ins, outs, loan moves

Erik ten Hag’s unorthodox Aaron Wan-Bissaka experiment paid off…

One of the shining lights in the Manchester United defence was Aaron Wan-Bissaka. The English full-back is always a reliable asset in defence – but this wasn’t a certainty in the position Erik ten Hag deployed him in against Spurs.

The Dutch manager opted to put Wan-Bissaka at left-back and Diogo Dalot on the right, despite the Portuguese ace playing there multiple times this season and Wan-Bissaka never being put in this role.

It was a strange decision, but ultimately, it paid off. Wan-Bissaka was against the pacey Welshman Brennan Johnson, who did not have a sniff all game.

More so, one of Tottenham’s most dangerous men Pedro Porro also didn’t have as much license to get forward and roam.

Here are his stats from the game:

• 90 minutes played
• 5 clearances
• 1 blocked shot
• 5 interceptions
• 2 tackles
• 1 time dribbled past
• 5/8 ground duels

Solid as a rock as always, Aaron.

• READ MORE: Gary Neville, Roy Keane and Jamie Redknapp all identify recurring Andre Onana issue at Man Utd

Why did Aaron-Wan Bissaka play left-back against Tottenham?

So why did Erik ten Hag do it? Well, speaking in his post-match interview, the Dutch manager stated that it wasn’t necessarily tactical, just more so the fact he was stepping in for the injured Luke Shaw.

“We expected Luke Shaw and trained with him, but this morning he dropped out, not fit enough to start,” said Ten Hag. “So to change them back and adapt our gameplan was too much, so we decided to put Wan-Bissaka there.”

Usually, there’s a method to Ten Hag’s madness, but this just appeared to be a straight swap. Nevertheless – it worked out well.