GARY NEVILLE has torn into three Manchester United stars over Everton’s late equaliser, admitting he fears the defensive problems could haunt his former club all season.
United surrendered a 2-1 lead at Goodison Park on Sunday as Ainsley Maitland-Niles produced a stunning late strike to earn Everton a 2-2 draw.
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The result means United have now conceded twice in each of their opening three Premier League games.
And Neville was furious with the way Michael Carrick‘s side allowed Everton to build the move that eventually led to the equaliser.
The former United defender singled out Leny Yoro, Patrick Dorgu and Andrey Santos for their roles in the defensive collapse.
Neville claimed he was “screaming” at his television as Everton exploited the space down United’s left flank.
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His biggest concern is that United could not find a solution even with what he considers their strongest available defence on the pitch.
United started with Luke Shaw, Diogo Dalot, Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez across the back.
But Neville believes the warning signs were there long before Maitland-Niles unleashed his spectacular effort.
He argued that United failed to react quickly enough as Everton moved forward, allowing the hosts to work the ball into a dangerous position.
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Neville also questioned the decision-making of the defenders, insisting United should have been more disciplined with the game entering its final stages.
The Sky Sports pundit fears opponents will increasingly believe they can hurt United if the Red Devils continue giving up cheap goals.
United have now conceded six times in three league games-despite having taken four points from those matches.
And Neville believes the problem could become a major issue as the season progresses.
He said on the Gary Neville podcast: “I don’t think it’s going to go away and that’s my big fear.
“That last goal is a really bad one. There’s a lot that happens before that goal goes in the back of Manchester United‘s net.
“When you’re playing against a team, it’s 2-1, you’re away, you’ve got to push up, you’ve got to make sure you don’t have players sprinting off and doing stupid things.
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“Dorgu sprints forward, the ball gets played past him and Everton just drift down that left side so easily.
“Santos doesn’t get across and when he doesn’t get across quickly enough Yoro is deep and narrow, almost playing like a third or fourth narrow centre back waiting for the ball to go into the box.
“So they could have stopped it at source. That to me is a real error in the lead-up, and I was screaming as it happened because you know full well you’re going to get the ball pumped into the box and you’re going to get a team behind desperate in the last few minutes so you have to make sure you’re organised and United weren’t organised in that last couple of minutes.’
The former England international added that he did not know how Carrick would solve the problem with limited defensive options available to him.
Matthijs de Ligt remains sidelined with a long-term injury, leaving Carrick short of alternatives in defence.
Neville also questioned late substitutions involving Shaw and Dalot, arguing that repeatedly changing the back four can make an already fragile defence even more unsettled.
United will now have little time to dwell on the Everton result.
They face Azerbaijan side Sabah FK in the Champions League before returning to Premier League action against bitter rivals Manchester City in the Manchester derby.
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Carrick was also unhappy with United’s defensive display and admitted his players must improve.
The United boss said when asked about Maitland-Niles’ equaliser.: “Obviously we can’t ignore it.
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“We need to concede fewer goals to give us a better chance of winning games.”
There pressure is now on the manager to tighten the back if United are to go on and have a good season.