It was another difficult afternoon for Manchester United and Ruben Amorim against Aston Villa, but one star in particular has been earmarked for criticism by Gary Neville
Gary Neville has torn into Manchester United defender Leny Yoro for the way Aston Villa ace Morgan Rogers got past him.
Ruben Amorim’s side fought valiantly against the Midlanders, but two moments of individual genius from Rogers saw Unai Emery’s side run out 2-1 winners at Villa Park. On two occasions, Rogers whipped a right-footed effort into the far corner, leaving Senne Lammens with no chance.
Unfortunately for Yoro who was deployed as a right-central defender, Rogers got the better of him on both occasions. Neville picked the young Frenchman out and made it clear he did not do enough to stop the Villa hitman from scoring.
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Speaking on the Gary Neville podcast, Neville said: “The first goal, I’ve got less sympathy for Leny Yoro. I actually thought as the ball went over his head, it was a difficult one for him to control as he runs towards the touchline.
“I’m thinking, as Rogers has turned his back and he runs towards the touchline, ‘Yoro, get after him. Sprint, harass him, hurry him!’ If you’re Morgan Rogers and I am Leny Yoro, you have to stand on the point of his right foot, so he cannot get across you.
“You can’t just say, ‘Show him down the line and then let him go across you.’ You have to show him knowing he can’t go back on his right foot, because that’s what he wants to do, but also you’re not showing him enough so he goes into the space.
“You always need to be threatening his right foot while you’re guiding him down the line and Leny Yoro did not do that. It was a big mistake in the game for him.
“He’s a young defender and he’ll pick it up, but I was surprised. If you’re doing your homework before the match and you’re a right-sided centre-back and you’re going to end up in the right-back position, which he did the other night against Semenyo against Bournemouth,
“He’s played that role twice now. He’s had to go out there, almost like a right-back. You have to think about before the game ‘What’s my picture of the match? What does my match look like?’”
In the 84th minute, Yoro was substituted for academy star Shea Lacey, as United searched for an equaliser. Amorim has previously said the ex-Lille defender allows individual mistakes to weigh on his mind too much.
Neville went on to put himself into Yoro’s shoes, by looking back at one player he tied him in knots when he was a youngster at United. Neville added: “I used to think, ‘Who am I playing against?’
“I remember getting done by David Ginola at Newcastle. He could go both ways and I was cutting off his left foot, thinking he is going to go that way and he went back onto his right and swung it into the far corner.
“It happens to everybody, but I think Yoro could have made it a lot harder for Morgan Rogers and he’s predictably going to go onto his right foot, he’s not two-footed in the sense he’s going to go onto his left and swing it in.”
2025-12-22 16:58:06
