Owen Hargreaves has singled out Matthijs de Ligt for his struggles against Samu Omorodion during Manchester United’s chaotic 3-3 Europa League draw with Porto. Hargreaves believes that Erik ten Hag must find a more stable centre-back partnership moving forward.
United seemed to be cruising early on, building a two-goal lead with goals from Marcus Rashford and Rasmus Højlund.
However, Porto responded with a strike from veteran defender Pepe in the 27th minute, sparking a comeback.
Omorodion then took over, scoring twice—once before and once after the break—putting Porto in front.
As United’s hopes faded further with Bruno Fernandes being sent off in the 81st minute,
Harry Maguire stepped up to equalize in the dying moments, potentially giving Ten Hag some breathing room.
Yet, with only two points from their first two Europa League group-stage matches, United remains under pressure.
✓ Harry Maguire’s Last-Minute Equalizer Secures Thrilling Draw For Manchester United Against Porto In Europa League
Owen Hargreaves said after the match.
‘Harry will play on the weekend against Villa – he’ll have to.’
‘De Ligt has struggled really badly today.
‘Obviously Samu is a super explosive and powerful player but against Ollie Watkins and Jhon Duran thats not going to get any easier so he’s got some big calls to make.’
Analysing De Ligt and Lisandro Martinez’s defending for Porto’s third goal, Hargreaves added:
‘They struggled. The gaps are too big there.
‘De Ligt loses Samu who was absolutely brilliant in terms of running the channels, efficient in front of goal.
‘That kid is a player and he caused De Ligt absolute nightmares today.’
United finished the match with Maguire and Jonny Evans on the pitch – in place of De Ligt and Martinez – and Hargreaves believes Ten Hag is still a long way from finding his first-choice partnership at the back.
‘He’s got to find a consistent centre-back partnership.
He took off his two starting centre-backs for two centre-backs that have been there for a really long time, Evans and Maguire.’
‘He’s got to find goals at the top of the pitch, he’s got to find a defensive partnership and he’s got to find a partnership in midfield.
‘But he’s been there quite a while now, Erik, and a lot of that should have been sorted.
‘I think there will be a lot of questions after the game because that’s not the level they need to be consistent.’
Their next challenge, an away trip to Aston Villa, could be critical for Ten Hag’s future.
