Manchester United vs Villarreal: All the important numbers you need to know | UEFA Champions League 2021-22
In just one week, Manchester United have gone from dreaming about a treble to getting ousted from one of their domestic tournaments i.e., the EFL Cup. But it doesn't end there. The Red Devils sit last in their Champions League group after getting beaten by Young Boys in Switzerland on Matchday one. A new week pits them against familiar opponents - Unai Emery's Villarreal.
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Emery continued his love story with the Europa League title when his side defeated Manchester United on penalties earlier this summer. This might be an added motivation for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his men to get their laurels at Old Trafford on Wednesday.
United's defeat to Aston Villa still keeps them in the top four of the Premier League table. But with Brighton & Hove Albion yet to play tonight, the Mancurians might move out of the Champions League spot before the International Break begins next weekend.
Meanwhile, Villarreal had an impressive display in the 0-0 draw against Real Madrid at Los Blancos's new stadium on Saturday. This was their fifth draw of the season, from six games played, which leaves them reeling in the 11th spot in La Liga. But they are yet to taste defeat this season.
Today, we take a look at some advanced statistics from Manchester United and Villarreal's season so far. We try to ascertain the points where the game could be won or lost on Wednesday evening.
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Goalkeeping and Distribution
David De Gea has retained his place in the starting XI despite some resistance from Dean Henderson last season. The veteran keeper in Manchester usually plays out his goal kicks shorter than Villarreal's Geronimo Rulli, with Harry Maguire and Raphael Varane obviously being very confident on the ball.
The Spaniard launches just 30% of his goal-kicks, while Rulli has been observed to play a long ball 46% of times from his share of goal-kicks.
Moreover, when talking about coming off the line, the Villarreal stopper stops 11% of the crosses into the box. This is almost double that of De Gea's tally of 6%. More direct play could favor United on Wednesday, rather than flooding the box with crosses, it seems.
Defensive Actions
Villarreal have averaged around 54% possession in all competitions this season, compared to United's figure of 51%. Despite these similar figures of possessing the ball, Villarreal pressed the opposition more number of times per 90 minutes (134) than their next hosts from Manchester (119).
One similarity between the two sides in terms of defensive actions is that both the teams have a pressure success rate of 30% this season.
Moreover, an important insight into these two sides' defending patterns could be that Manchester United are most active in the midfield. This is with respect to the number of tackles and interceptions, while Villarreal are the most passive on this area of the pitch.
Passing & Chance Creation
Unai Emery's men will have to be wary of their counterparts' ability to build threatening attacks in the final third. Manchester United are the Premier League side with the most goals created from open play this season. However, the Europa League Champions have relied upon dribbling past players to create goals this season. They are just third behind Real Madrid & Real Sociedad when it comes to the goals scored after dribbling actions.
When it comes to dangerous attacks in the final third, United create almost double the number of situations which lead to a shot on target (29) than Villarreal's tally (15). With the Red Devils playing at home, they are expected to be on top of their opponents right from the kick-off whistle.
Goal-scoring & Set-pieces
Villarreal have been really poor in their finishing this season. They have scored six goals in six games from an Expected Goals (xG) total of 7.0, which is the seventh worst tally in La Liga out of the 20 teams that compete every season. United, on the other hand, have been absolutely pin-point accurate, outscoring their xG count of 9.90 by scoring 13 goals in their six games played in the Premier League.
Manchester United have conceded five goals since the start of their domestic season. Four of those goals have come from open-play for Solskjaer's men, while one goal has been conceded through a set-piece. Villarreal have conceded all three of their goals through open play in La Liga, proving their set-piece supremacy right.
A shoutout to the Spanish visitors for Wednesday, who have conceded just three goals in six games played. This is despite playing against the likes of Atletico and Real Madrid in the league.
All the statistics are from Fbref.com.
Also read: Manchester United vs Villarreal prediction, preview, team news and more.