Writing for Manchester Evening News, David Hughes explains why the 23-year-old is the solution to the Frenchman’s absence against PSG.
With Paul Pogba serving a suspension due to his second yellow card for a foul on Dani Alves in the first leg against PSG in February and Nemanja Matic’s injury, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will have another problem to solve on Wednesday night. Fortunately, he has a player who is ready to take control of the midfield and that’s Andreas Pereira.
The Brazilian didn’t impress during Jose Mourinho’s last months at Old Trafford but Pereira’s performance against Liverpool and Southampton is something to be happy about. Manchester Evening News’ David Hughes explains why United fans shouldn’t worry about Pogba’s absence as long as Pereira keeps on blossoming under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
His pass accuracy was sublime
“It was perhaps Pereira’s best performance of the season. Featuring in a midfield central three, he was anchored by the ever-improving McTominay, allowing him and Pogba to influence the match further up the pitch. Moving the ball forward, Pereira’s passing was supreme; he completed 9/9 of his attempted passes forward, 3/3 of his passes into the final third and 2/3 of his passes into the box.”
Pereira’s reaction is impressive
“What makes his above impact that bit more impressive was his level of contribution given the amount of times he received the ball in comparison to United’s other key attacking midfielder Pogba. The Brazilian international received just 21 passes across his 84 minutes on the pitch at Old Trafford, while Pogba received the ball 45 times.”