Marouane Fellaini is in line to miss Manchester United’s clash with Aston Villa – How much do they need him?
Belgian midfielder Marouane Fellaini is enjoying a second lease of life at Manchester United under Louis van Gaal.
Much-criticised for his performances under former boss, he has become a vital part of their winning run.
Fellaini however will miss the away trip to Villa Park through illness, the Manchester Evening News confirmed last night.
How much will they miss him? Well here’s a look using statistics from Opta, at United’s record with and without him in the Premier League this season:
| Goals per game | Goals Conceded per game | Points per game | Games | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Man Utd | Without Fellaini | 2 | 1.4 | 1.6 | 5 |
| Man Utd | With Fellaini | 1.73 | 0.91 | 2.09 | 11 |
With Fellaini, United average more points per game than they have done without the £27.5 million midfielder in the side.
Interestingly their attack has flowed better without him, averaging more goals per game when he has not featured, but defensively they are a far better team, conceding under a goal per game.
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