When Ralph Hassenhuttl's Southampton side drew 1-1 with Manchester United on Saturday, the Austrian manager was very clear when explaining how his team had managed to secure a result.
"It is not a big secret that when they lose the ball the reverse gears are not the best from everybody," he told a post-match news conference.
Ralf Rangnick echoed the thoughts of his one-time RB Leipzig colleague.
"As I said, we have technical players. They like to play technical football but in the Premier League, no matter against which team - and especially in games like those against Southampton - you cannot win games only in a technical way. You also have to show some physicality."
One of the biggest culprits in this regard for many United fans was Marcus Rashford, who consistently didn't come back enough despite being deployed on both wings during the Southampton game. He also lost the ball frequently to invite pressure on his teammates.
Anthony Elanga was preferred to the England international in Rangnick's XI to face Brighton and the difference was fairly evident.
According to Sofascore, Rashford had 42 touches against Southampton and Elanga similarly had 40 on Tuesday. But there is a stark difference when you compare how many times they lost possession, with Rashford losing the ball 21 times to Elanga's 10.
Rashford attempted to cross the ball four times (with zero completed) compared to Elanga, who did not try to cross at all, preferring to drive into the box, but this still does not reflect well on Marcus overall.
When you compare their heatmaps it is clear Elanga has the 'reverse gears' that Hassenhuttl hinted Rashford is missing.
Some of this could be attributed to the overall change of tactics from Rangnick, who deployed a midblock (aka. the return of McFred) against Brighton, but still, Elanga's work rate seems to be playing him into the German's plans.
According to FBref, Rashford's defensive actions are also usurped by Elanga.
Rashford recorded 22 attempted pressures against Southampton, whereas Elanga only managed 14 versus Brighton. Again, the wider tactical framework could be a reason for this.
But whereas Rashford did not record any defensive actions, Elanga completed two tackles, one interception and one block - excellent output for a forward.
To help achieve the overall team contribution to both defence and attack that Rangnick has been asking from his players, Elanga should keep his place and relegate Rashford, at least for the moment, to an impact substitute role.
However, Marcus' lack of influence when he came on against Brighton is a cause for concern. He seemed off the pace and ineffective as the team looked for a second goal.
His drop off in form has already seen him moved off his favoured left-wing in favour of Jadon Sancho, but could he fall even further?
Hopefully, this is just a blip and he can be back to his best soon, but there needs to be a serious upturn if Rashford is to play a significant role in United's search for a top-four spot.
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