According to Mirror, Manchester United's defensive line of Diogo Dalot, Harry Maguire, Lisandro Martínez and Luke Shaw has kept only four clean sheets across 12 appearances together, raising concerns about their defensive stability.

Since Michael Carrick took over Manchester United, the team's performance has improved enough to challenge for Champions League qualification, but defensive concerns persist. Questions about Manchester United's defence have lingered, and the lack of defensive investment in the transfer market this summer could further compound these worries.

Baleba's arrival should help. The Cameroonian midfielder is expected to provide defensive cover after his return from injury.

However, the four defenders in Manchester United's starting lineup in Sunday's match against Everton are the same defensive combination that lost 0-4 away to Brentford approximately four years ago.

Then-manager Erik ten Hag invested heavily in signing Casemiro following that defeat. The Brazilian midfielder performed well in his first season at Old Trafford, but his form has declined in his second season.

The defensive line of Diogo Dalot, Harry Maguire, Lisandro Martínez and Luke Shaw has produced some positive results, but questions remain about their ability to limit opposition goals.

Carrick has used this combination this season against Ipswich and Everton, and the four have played together a total of 12 times. However, these 12 games have yielded only four clean sheets, which is not ideal.

In the 12 games where Diogo Dalot, Harry Maguire, Lisandro Martínez and Luke Shaw formed the defensive quartet, Manchester United recorded 8 wins, 2 draws and 2 defeats. Based on these statistics alone, it does not appear particularly alarming, but Manchester United conceded a total of 17 goals across these 12 games.

In seven of these games, Manchester United's opponents scored at least two goals. This includes two games in the current season, as well as three 3-2 defeats against Arsenal, Fulham and Nottingham Forest in the previous season.

Extrapolating 17 conceded goals over 12 games to a full season would equate to approximately 54 conceded goals across 38 matches. In the previous season, only six Premier League teams conceded more than 54 goals, and three of them were relegated.

If Manchester United hopes to improve on last season's third-place finish, they will need to shore up their defence. Manchester United has had only four Premier League seasons in which they conceded 54 or more goals, and in those seasons their best finish was sixth.

When Manchester United played at Goodison Park on Sunday, Saka scored late in the game, and the team appeared to have done enough to secure victory. But then Maitland-Niles struck a world-class effort on his Everton debut, allowing Manchester United to equalize.

Carrick told BBC Match of the Day: "Of course, we don't want to concede goals. Today was different from previous games; the main thing was to see the game through because we were in a very good position."

As Baleba adapts to his new role at Old Trafford, he should provide defensive support. However, some are now beginning to question whether the time has come for Manchester United to make further adjustments to their defensive line.

Переведено ИИ.

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