The three Man Utd players who covered the most distance, with worrying Tottenham comparison

A look at the Manchester United running statistics vs Tottenham.

Manchester United’s poor form has led to the team coming under scrutiny from every angle. One aspect that is really hard to ignore right now is the running statistics.

Sky Sports had noted how United ranked joint-bottom of the Premier League for ‘high-intensity runs’, heading into the international break.

Speaking after the 1-1 draw against Tottenham, Gary Neville warned: “They [fans] won’t accept a lack of what they deem to be effort. I don’t like saying effort but the reality is they’re not running enough, they’re not showing enough tenacity, determination, fighting spirit. They’re just not.”

United ran five kilometres fewer than Tottenham did across the 90 minutes plus stoppage time.

Via data from FotMob, we can pick out the three Manchester United players who covered the most ground against Tottenham.

• Kobbie Mainoo:

  11.3km

• Bruno Fernandes:

  11.1km

• Bryan Mbeumo:

  11.1km

The problem for United was that the top efforts of these three players ranked second best to Tottenham’s top three.

• Dominic Solanke:

  12.3km

• Sandro Tonali:

  11.8km

• Archie Gray:

  11.6km

United players must dig in and outwork opponents

Manchester United’s players are clearly not talented enough to dominate opponents. Big names or high transfer fees do not guarantee success.

This was evident in the first game of the season when newly promoted Hull City embarrassed Michael Carrick’s side with a 2-0 victory.

The trouble is, not much has changed since. United have been consistently outworked by opposing teams, and it has left Michael Carrick’s side with a mountain to climb. The side rank 13th in the Premier League table, and can have no complaints.

Next weekend the team face rivals Leeds. They will need to dig in and fight for all three points.