Keane and Richards agree on what Man Utd should have done to stop Foden
Roy Keane was critical of Manchester United's defending in the build-up to Phil Foden's first goal in Sunday's Manchester derby.
The Red Devils took the lead against the run of play in the eighth minute after Marcus Rashford dispatched a stunning 25-yard strike beyond Ederson but Manchester City fought back to win the match 3-1. Foden restored parity early in the second half before plundering a second goal in the 80th minute. Erling Haaland added a third in injury time.
Foden's first strike came after the England star cut in from the right flank beyond Victor Lindelof and lashed an unstoppable strike past Andre Onana. And while he got plenty of plaudits for the goal, Keane tore into United's attempts to contain him.
He told Sky Sports during his analysis of the goal: "I’d be critical of the United defenders. They've got the players back but two or three players are just having a breather at the wrong time. You've got Foden and we’ve seen it many times this season, cutting in but the players are just having that breather for a split second, and you can’t do that against Foden!
"We’ve seen it before. When he’s a left footer cutting in like this and you know he’s dangerous but when you have bodies in there, this is still early in the second half and it’s not towards the end, that is where you have to switch on. There are two or three of them, you have to get out to the ball! It’s Foden! He’s an amazing, brilliant player, he wants to come on this side, get out to him!"
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Micah Richards sympathised with Lindelof but agreed with Keane's point that his teammates should have backed him up. The former Manchester City star added: "It was a little bit difficult for [Lindelof] in terms of body shapes when you've got a defender playing on the wrong side.
"I always used to try and show someone a certain way, but because Phil Foden can go both ways I agree with Roy - he should have just got tighter and made his mind up for him, but he let Foden dictate him."
Join the debate! Do you agree with Keane? Let us know here.
Roy Keane and Micah Richards both felt United could have done more to contain Foden (Sky Sports)Keane then chimed in again, saying: "But even when he comes in, Micah, that's when you want your help from your teammates. I know people say you can't show him in, but if he does then Foden goes where he wants to go because he's a brilliant player. But they had the bodies back. When I was a midfielder and I saw someone come into my area, I'm going, 'Happy days, this is where I can go and nail somebody'. But there's two or three of them who are just a bit no-no. Get there!"
Despite his comments on the defending for Foden's goal, Keane was reluctant to criticise United's overall performance. He added: " I don’t want to be too hard on Manchester United today because I thought Man City were brilliant and they showed why they are champions.
"That’s 11 league losses for United, what City do is they find all your shortcomings, and when you are on that pitch and it’s tough, there is no hiding place. It’s like a boxer, when you’re in that ring there is no hiding place, and they just wore them down."
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