Gary Neville blasts Man Utd pair as Bruno Fernandes throws teammates under the bus

Gary Neville has already ‘seen enough’ of the Youri Tielemans and Kobbie Mainoo partnership to know it can’t work, though Manchester United captain, Bruno Fernandes, must shoulder some of the blame.

Man Utd spent large portions of Saturday evening’s contest making Tottenham look like prime Barcelona. This Spurs side sat rock bottom of the table entering the contest, though cut through the home side at will, creating chance after chance.

The midfield pairing of Tielemans and Mainoo looked powerless to halt their opponents, with Tottenham easily bypassing the duo time after time.

Ultimately, it was Spurs’ wasteful finishing that spared United’s blushes as the home side escaped with a draw against 10 men.

Speaking post-match, United legend, Gary Neville, insisted the Tielemans-Mainoo tandem should be shelved.

Youri Tielemans, Kobbie Mainoo can’t play together in the Premier League

“Tielemans and Mainoo, I think we’ve seen enough of it now,” Neville said.

“I’m not calling time on it because that’s probably too drastic but I’ve seen enough to think that’s not a midfield that’s dynamic enough to play at this football club in the Premier League.

“I think they are both good players, by the way, individually. But sometimes you just have players that don’t quite knit together or don’t quite suit each other.

“I think when [Carlos] Baleba came on with Mainoo, it looked like there was a lot more energy.

“There’s going to have to be something done in there, and the rest of them are going to have to get a grip because they are going to a Diego Simeone Atletico Madrid and Elland Road.

“If you’re not quite right there from a mental and physical perspective, you’re going to get found out.

“They’ve got a couple of days to recover, pick themselves up from this, and get going because if they don’t get going, it’s going to be a worrying few weeks.”

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Bruno Fernandes exacerbates Youri Tielemans, Kobbie Mainoo deficiencies

Tielemans and Mainoo looked sluggish and cumbersome throughout the contest, and their dire displays should not be defended.

However, it is fair to say the pair were given virtually no protection from those ahead of them, with Bruno Fernandes offering little more than a token effort at tracking back.

On numerous occasions the Portuguese ambled back into his own half before failing to cut passing lanes or mark runners from deep.

Speaking on Match of the Day, pundit Danny Murphy suggested the only way the Tielemans-Mainoo pairing could work is if a third body as added to the middle by dropping a forward player.

But in reality, that should not be required if Fernandes simply did what most No 10s in the league do and drop into midfield when out of possession.

“There was a lethargy about Man Utd,” declared Murphy. “This midfield can’t control games.

“It’s partly tactical, partly personnel. They’ve got to get back to basics, being harder to beat, close the distances.

“Maybe you drop a forward player into midfield to create a three, a more solid three next time they play.

“But if they play like that against good teams, they’re going to get cut wide open because that’s impossible.”

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