Manchester United were held to a 2-2 draw at Everton on 6 September in the Premier League, with Ainsley Maitland-Niles scoring a stoppage-time equaliser to cancel out Benjamin Sesko’s 88th-minute goal. Bryan Mbeumo had opened the scoring for United at the start of the second half, before Tyrique George levelled for Everton in the 83rd minute.
The result left United with one win, one draw and one defeat from three Premier League matches, sitting 11th in the table. It is the third consecutive league game in which they have conceded two goals.
Neville’s 76-goal warning
Gary Neville, speaking on the Gary Neville Podcast, was blunt about the scale of the problem. He said that Manchester United are conceding two goals per game and that, at that rate, they would concede 76 in a season.
Neville was particularly critical of the goal that gave Everton their point. He said the second concession was very bad and that United could have stopped it at the source, pointing to Dogu’s forward run allowing Everton to advance easily down the left, with Santos failing to cover and Yoro positioned too deep and too central.
He added that other teams will feel they have a chance against United and that the side lacked the ability to finish games off, which allowed Everton back into the match after United had led.
Carrick calls for improvement
Manager Michael Carrick acknowledged the defensive issue after the match. He said the club cannot ignore the problem and must concede fewer goals to give themselves a better chance of winning.
Carrick noted that both Everton goals were essentially long-range shots and that sometimes such strikes find the corner, but he was clear that the squad still has areas to improve. He has limited options at centre-back because Matthijs de Ligt remains out with a long-term injury.
United face Sabah of Azerbaijan in the Champions League before the Manchester derby against City the following weekend.
