Manchester United's level of intensity has once again become a talking point after their 1-1 stalemate with Fulham in the Premier League. The match sparked a heated discussion about the team's work rate, especially after Matheus Cunha voiced a stark criticism from within the squad.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Cunha said, "They put in more energy than us, we cannot accept this," suggesting that the opposition were covering more ground and exerting more effort than United. This sentiment was echoed by former player and Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville, who observed, "I've never seen a Man Utd team walk out of possession as much as that," highlighting a perceived tendency for United to retreat rather than press. To understand whether these comments have any statistical backing, we can look at the data compiled by Opta and other tracking sources from the Fulham encounter. The numbers paint a nuanced picture.
United tied with Manchester City for the lowest number of high‑speed runs in the league, each registering 1,691 such bursts. However, it is worth noting that City played most of their recent derby at Old Trafford with ten men, which inevitably skews their figures.
When we strip away that anomaly, United's high‑speed run total still lags behind the majority of Premier League sides. Perhaps more telling is the proportion of time United spent walking while out of possession.
At Fulham, the Red Devils were walking 52.98% of the time when they did not have the ball. Only seven clubs posted a higher percentage during the current season, but the figure represents United's highest walking rate of the campaign. Over the whole season, United’s average walking percentage sits at 51.13%, placing them 17th in the league.
Historically, since the start of the 2022‑23 season, there have been 30 matches where a team walked a greater share of the time while out of possession than United did on that day. One of those matches was United’s own 3‑0 victory over Brighton at the end of last season, where they recorded a walking rate of 54.59%. In terms of total distance covered, United ran 110.2 kilometres on the Sunday match, the second‑lowest total across the Premier League that weekend, only ahead of Liverpool, who covered 108.4 kilometres at Bournemouth.
The gap between United and Fulham was 6.5 kilometres, the second‑largest differential this season when both teams fielded a full eleven. For comparison, Arsenal out‑ran Coventry by 6.8 kilometres on the opening night of the campaign. United have also been out‑run by Hull City, Ipswich Town and Everton at various points this season. The only side that United have out‑distanced is Manchester City, who, despite having Phil Foden sent off after 23 minutes, still managed a lower total distance.
Positional data adds another layer to the analysis. Fulham were able to begin their passing sequences on average just 36.9 metres from United’s goal – the shortest distance any opponent has started from in the Premier League this weekend. This statistic underscores United’s deep defensive stance when they lost the ball. By contrast, United were allowed to start their own attacks from an average of 43.4 metres from the Fulham goal, the third‑highest figure among all teams in that round of fixtures.
Neville highlighted Fulham’s propensity for longer build‑up play, noting that they produced the most 10‑plus pass sequences ending in a shot or a touch inside the opposition box. Despite the criticism, United’s manager Michael Carrick pushed back against the narrative that his side lacked energy.
When confronted with Cunha’s comments in the post‑match press conference, Carrick remarked, "The way we finished the game it didn't look like that for me," suggesting that the players’ intensity improved towards the end of the match. Supporting this view, United topped the "progress" metric for the round, which measures the metres gained per passing sequence.
This indicates that, even when starting from deep positions, United were able to advance the ball significantly once they regained possession. Their 36 entries into the opponent’s penalty area were the highest of any team in a Premier League match this season, reflecting a potent attacking thrust despite a defensive posture. Offensively, United were busy. They registered 29 shots against Fulham, including two that struck the woodwork in the first half.
This contributed to a season‑to‑date total of 113 shots, the most in the league. Their Expected Goals (xG) tally stands at 10.24, placing them third overall in the Premier League. These figures demonstrate that United can create quality chances and are efficient in converting possession into threatening moments. Nevertheless, the broader picture remains concerning for Carrick.
While the attacking statistics are impressive, United have only amassed five points from their opening five fixtures – a return that falls short of the optimism that accompanied their third‑place finish last season. The low‑ranking running statistics have added fuel to the supporters’ frustrations, especially after a disappointing draw against a mid‑table side like Fulham.
A failure to secure a win against bottom‑placed Tottenham after the international break could see United’s start to the season become the worst in the club’s history, prompting even harsher scrutiny of Carrick’s tactics and the squad’s overall fitness. In summary, the data from the Fulham match reveals a team that, at times, appears to retreat and walk rather than press, yet possesses the ability to generate significant attacking momentum when the ball is won back.
The challenge for Michael Carrick will be to translate those attacking flashes into consistent results, improve the team’s overall work rate, and avoid a historically poor start that could jeopardise the season’s ambitions.