Manchester United won back-to-back games after completing a 4-2 victory over Leeds United in the English Premier League. The Red Devils are unbeaten in their last seven league games and have strengthened their hold in the fourth spot. Leeds United have now lost two games in a row and are winless in their last four league games. They are just five points above the relegation zone.
We’ve broken down all the key stats for you to digest, including;
* shot maps
* xT (expected threat)
* pass networks
* xG timelines
* defensive duels
* average positions and much more!
We also try to answer some questions for you with the visuals;
How many shots were attempted by Leeds United? Who attempted the highest number of smart passes for Manchester United?
To navigate the stats gallery, simply click on the numbers to move through the pages.
At the end of the gallery, you’ll be able to download the full PDF stats report.
The home team started in a 4-1-4-1 formation with Rodrigo Moreno leading the line. Daniel James started for the first time against his former club since joining Leeds United permanently in the summer.
The average position of the starting XI hints that Pascal Struijk, Diego Llorente, and Luke Ayling played as the three centre-backs, and Robin Koch supported them along with Stuart Dallas. Daniel James played a more central role.
Manchester United played in a 4-4-1-1 formation, and Jesse Lingard returned to the starting XI. Aaron Wan-Bissaka started on the right side of the defense and replaced Diogo Dalot, who was probably rested for the Champions League fixture.
Scott McTominay played as the holding midfielder, allowing Pogba to roam freely in the midfield. Cristiano Ronaldo was supported by Jadon Sancho, Bruno Fernandes, and Jesse Lingard in the attack.
Leeds United dominated possession in the match but created fewer positional attacks than the opposition. Both teams attempted an equal number of shots and passes into the opposition’s penalty area, but Manchester United had a better success rate on both occasions. The Red Devils were involved in more defensive actions and made 13 tackles.
Jadon Sancho has been one of the positives in Manchester United’s attack in the recent past. The attacking midfielder attempted three shots and the most dribbles in the match. Mateusz Klich attempted the highest number of shots, with an xG rate of 0.44. Junior Firpo attempted the highest number of passes into the opposition’s penalty area and won the highest number of aerial duels.
Leeds United attempted 15 shots with a 40% shot accuracy rate. Of the 15 shots, six were attempted from inside the opposition’s penalty box. One goal was scored from the left side while attempting a cross, and the other was scored from inside the opposition’s 6-yard box.
Manchester United players attempted 15 shots, and six were on target. The Red Devils scored their first goal from a corner this season after Harry Maguire gave them the lead in the first half.
Manchester United players created a lot of threats before scoring the first goal in the 33rd minute. The away team attempted more shots in the first half, and Leeds United attempted more shots in the second half. Leeds United players attempted five shots in the first ten minutes of the second half and scored two goals in the process.
Luke Ayling attempted the most passes for the home team. Of his 53 passes, seven were towards Stuart Dallas. Ayling received 38 passes, and nine were from Dallas.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Victor Lindelof attempted 45 passes each in the match. Wan-Bissaka attempted eight passes towards Bruno Fernandes, and Victor Lindelof attempted one pass fewer than him towards the same player.
Daniel James attempted the most crosses for Leeds United. Of his 18 passes, five were crosses, and one was in the form of a smart pass. His five passes landed inside the opposition’s penalty box.
Bruno Fernandes attempted five smart passes, and his three landed inside the opposition’s penalty box. Jadon Sancho attempted 37 passes, and his six touchdowns landed inside the opposition’s penalty box.
Leeds United players created fewer threats in the final third. Most of the threat was created from the left side, where Junior Firpo operated. Daniel James created the highest threat from passes.
Daniel Hames attempted the most dribbles for Leeds United. His eight dribbles created an xT of 0.019 from dribbles. Mateusz Klich created the highest threat.
The above chart shows that Manchester United players created more threats in the final third than the opposition. Jadon Sancho operated on the left and created the highest threat rate. Victor Lindelof was also effective with his passing and created the second-highest threat rate.
Paul Pogba created the highest threat rate from five attempted dribbles. Jadon Sancho attempted eight dribbles and created the second-highest threat rate.
Adam Forshaw contested the highest number of defensive duels for his side. He contested 20 duels and lost eight of them. The home team won most of their duels in the middle.
Leeds United players won most of their aerial duels in the final third. Junior Firpo contested three aerial duels with a 100% win rate.
Leeds United won most of the loose ball duels in the middle third. Mateusz Klich contested six duels and won five of them.
Manchester United players won most of the defensive duels in the defensive third. Jesse Lingard contested 14 duels but lost most of them.
Harry Maguire won two aerial duels for his side. He won one duel inside the opposition’s penalty area.
The Red Devils won most of their loose ball duels in the middle. Scott McTominay contested 12 duels and lost five of them.
Leeds United won three corners, and two were from the left side. All the corners were awarded in the second half. The home team won ten free-kicks inside the opposition’s half.
The away team also won the same number of corners, and two were from the right side. Manchester United players also won 16 throw-ins towards the right side.
Leeds United scored two goals in the space of two minutes but were unable to win any points from the game. Ralf Rangnick’s men showed quality on the field and scored more goals to seal a victory.
If you want to download the stats report in PDF format you can do so here: Premier League Stats: Leeds United vs Manchester United