Manchester United need to keep their eyes on one particular player during their clash in the Premier League tonight.
Ralf Rangnick’s men are in danger of letting their chances of grabbing a spot in the top four slip away from them this season, with two draws in their last two games meaning they missed out on a great opportunity to jump into the Champions League spots as we approach the business end of the season.
They are set to take on a Brighton & Hove Albion side that are in a decent run of form in recent weeks, as they are currently unbeaten since Boxing Day in the league, with their only defeat in 2022 coming away to Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup.
One of the key reasons for that has been the performances of Tariq Lamptey, with his most recent game against Watford showing the danger that he can pose at both ends of the pitch.
Not only was he solid at the back, making three tackles, one clearance and two interceptions, but he also completed 82% of his passes, which was above the team average. Elsewhere, he also made one key pass, completed one dribble whilst grabbing the assist for their opening goal against the Hornets with an impressive cross into the box on his way to a 7.86 rating (via WhoScored).
Interestingly, the £35k-per-week star has been fouled more times than Cristiano Ronaldo so far this season, with 35 fouls to 19 (as per FBRef).
TIF Thoughts on Tariq Lamptey and his danger to Manchester United…
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Lamptey is someone that Manchester United are well aware of coming into the clash at Old Trafford, as they were reportedly showing an interest in signing him during the January transfer window, but after his recent performances, you would imagine that they will need to take extra steps to make sure he doesn’t disrupt their plans for the game.
Luke Shaw could particularly be in for a difficult game, but with the left-back having come off an impressive performance himself in his last outing against Southampton – where he was only dribbled past once and was successful with two of his three tackle attempts, whilst also completing 87% of his passes (via WhoScored) – it seems as if he’s also coming into the game in good form.
Whether or not the rest of the Manchester United team is up to the task, though, we’ll just have to wait and see.
In other news: Dubbed the next Aguero: Romano reveals MUFC turned down ‘opportunity’ to sign ‘top talent’