Manchester United’s woeful crossing against Fulham at least highlighted who is better than most.
81 crosses, we won’t dwell on that astronomical figure, but we will concentrate on why the 2-2 draw proved Manchester United have to start Adnan Januzaj in midweek.
Amid their woeful attempts, the success of the 19-year-old stood out, as the only midfielder to make more than three successful crosses.
This, despite the fact he only came on as a late substitute and played under half an hour.
| Player | Team | Total Cross | Accurate Cross | Crossing Accuracy % | Mins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrice Evra | Man Utd | 14 | 5 | 35.71 | 90 |
| Adnan Januzaj | Man Utd | 12 | 5 | 41.67 | 28 |
| Juan Mata | Man Utd | 11 | 3 | 27.27 | 90 |
| Darren Fletcher | Man Utd | 2 | 1 | 50.00 | 62 |
| Rafael | Man Utd | 10 | 1 | 10.00 | 69 |
| Wayne Rooney | Man Utd | 12 | 1 | 8.33 | 90 |
| Ashley Young | Man Utd | 15 | 1 | 6.67 | 69 |
| Robin van Persie | Man Utd | 2 | 1 | 50.00 | 90 |
| Michael Carrick | Man Utd | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 90 |
| Chris Smalling | Man Utd | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 90 |
| Luis Antonio Valencia | Man Utd | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 21 |
The player preferred to Januzaj, Ashley Young, is put to shame by the youngster’s contribution.
The England international attempted 15 crosses and saw only one reach it’s intended target, a woeful accuracy of 6.67 per cent.
Januzaj was the team leader in terms of accurate crosses, while Patrice Evra also made five successful crosses, he did so from two more attempts and in almost 70 minutes more time than the wonderkid.
United play an Arsenal side who in Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny have made more than 180 headed clearances along between them all season.
If United are to stand a chance, based on their tactics at the weekend they need their best crosser of the ball in the side, plain and simple.
image: © joncandy
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