Jaap Stam destroys four United players after 10-man City seal Old Trafford win

Manchester United were beaten 1-0 by Manchester City at Old Trafford on Sunday despite facing 10 opponents for 67 minutes, and club legend Jaap Stam has delivered a damning verdict on four of the players who failed to capitalise.

Speaking after the derby defeat, Stam singled out Bruno Fernandes, Marcus Rashford, Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha for criticism, questioning whether United’s forwards showed the urgency or tactical awareness required to break down a depleted City side.

“If you look at City and if you look at this game, it was easy for them today, even with 10 men,” Stam told Viaplay. “Against 10 men, even if it’s City with the quality that they have, you would expect United to be on the front foot every time, to be very, very aggressive, even the strikers tracking back.”

The former United centre-half also criticised the team’s lack of a coherent attacking plan. “If you have possession and they are dropping a little bit deeper, use the side, use the width of the game a little bit, put crosses in the box,” he said. “But now sometimes, you feel like when they’re playing, there’s not a real idea in how to get to opportunities and how to make it difficult for the opposition.”

Erling Haaland’s second-half strike settled the contest, though it was not without controversy. The Premier League’s refereeing body Pro Ref has since acknowledged an “error of judgment” from VAR officials after Enzo Fernandez appeared to be in an offside position during the build-up to the goal.

The result leaves manager Michael Carrick under mounting pressure. United sit 13th in the Premier League table after four matches — a run that also includes a defeat at Hull City in the Carabao Cup and a draw at Everton — matching the club’s joint-worst start to a top-flight season, level with last term’s difficult opening under Ruben Amorim and the 1992-93 campaign.

Carrick, who took over from the dismissed Amorim on a temporary basis in January and guided the club to a third-place finish, was handed the role permanently in May. Sunday’s derby result suggests the honeymoon period is firmly over.