AZ Alkmaar 0-0 Manchester United: 4 Talking Points
Manchester United's dismal away form continued as they failed to win for the 10th consecutive time away from Old Trafford (D4 L6). AZ Alkmaar could perhaps be the side that's more disappointed with the result having posed more of a danger to Solskjaer's men through the 90 minutes.
The home side began the game well and Manchester United appeared thoroughly overwhelmed for the opening 20 minutes. They started to get a foothold in the game and pushing Alkmaar back without really creating much. On the other hand, when the Dutch side pushed forward, they looked like creating a dangerous chance every time. Oussama Idrissi was a particular thorn in Manchester United side as he drove at defenders and played in curling balls that were difficult to defend.
Unfortunately for Solskjaer, none of that attacking impetus appeared in Manchester United's play. Daniel James and Angel Gomes still appeared to be attempting runs and getting involved with play, but Mason Greenwood became a rather peripheral figure as the game progressed. The youngster probably had Manchester United's best chance of the night when James drove a low cross back to him but Greenwood's shot was blocked.
There's a long way to go for United and they have 4 points from two games, which is far from a poor return, but there's plenty for them to improve upon in terms of performance.
#1 De Gea shines again
Manchester United finished the game without even a single shot on target. Disappointing as they may have been in front of the opposition goal, their custodian was once again a big reason that they took a point from this game instead of returning to Manchester empty-handed.
On more than once occasion Alkmaar tested De Gea and found that the Spaniard would not budge. He's come under some criticism in recent games, but his positioning and shot-stopping against AZ were without any blemishes.