One winner and four losers from Manchester United’s loss to Wolves

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Manchester United are in a sad situation right now as the 2024/25 season plunges new depths.

Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United have a lot to digest right now after slumping to a 2-0 away loss to Wolves.

As we reflect on another loss, let’s dig into the winners and losers from the encounter…

Winner

Altay Bayindir: There are not really any winners from Manchester United’s loss, highlighted by our player ratings.

But for sake of filling a gap, let’s make an argument that Altay Bayindir is the only player to come out of this night with his reputation ‘less damaged’ than it was entering the night.

A week ago Bayindir was slammed by fans and pundits alike after he conceded direct from a corner in United’s Carabao Cup loss to Tottenham. Bayindir claimed he was impeded by the Tottenham players.

But against Wolves, Manchester United’s first choice goalkeeper Andre Onana committed exactly the same error.

So was the problem Bayindir? Perhaps only partly. This latest goal suggested Manchester United’s problem is deeper rooted than that.

Losers

Bruno Fernandes: Scrubbing out the Spurs red card which was overturned, this was the second time Bruno Fernandes has been sent off this season.

Just like his a red card against Porto, Fernandes was dismissed for a second bookable offence.

This one may have been the worst of the bunch. Fernandes lacked the composure and awareness that he was already on a booking, to lunge in, and there were no arguments with his red card.

Fernandes let the team down, United conceded twice after, and he is now suspended for the upcoming fixture against Newcastle.

Andre Onana: Manchester United’s goalkeeper can expect plenty more rough treatment at set pieces after this fixture.

Just like Altay Bayindir was weak against Tottenham, Andre Onana was no better and deserves his share of flak too.

Onana is going to be targeted from set pieces in the Newcastle game, and he should have done better despite being impeded. No goalkeeper should concede from a corner, especially as this is something United should be working to avoid.

Leny Yoro: A winner is somebody who wins matches. Leny Yoro is unfortunately the very opposite of that right now.

Yoro has an unfortunate record. He has started for Manchester United against Nottingham Forest, Tottenham, and Wolves. He has lost all three.

Brighter days are ahead for Leny Yoro, for sure. But right now, Manchester United would probably be better off against Newcastle with Matthijs de Ligt brought back into the side.

Ruben Amorim: There are some big questions for Ruben Amorim to deal with right now at Manchester United.

Amorim has just lost three matches in a row for the first time in his managerial career. Upcoming fixtures against Newcastle, Liverpool and Arsenal show there is no respite soon.

There are some serious issues for the head coach to deal with. One of them is set pieces, a serious problem.

Conceding twice straight from corner kicks shows something is wrong. Set pieces as a whole have turned games against United over the past month, in matches against Arsenal, Tottenham, Bournemouth and Wolves.

Amorim said after the Bournemouth game that set pieces were an issue he would be accountable for, rather than a specific member of his staff. So he must fix this problem.

There is also the issue of discipline. Whatever Amorim is saying to his players at half-time is not working. United have conceded two minutes after the break in matches against Forest and Tottenham, and then in this one, Fernandes was sent off at the start of the second half.