After a 3-2 loss to Borussia Dortmund at Allegiant Stadium, Manchester United’s U.S. tour came to an end.
The defensive struggles of Erik ten Hag’s squad ultimately led to their third loss in as many games in the United States.
United took the lead on a goal by Diogo Dalot, but Dortmund’s Donyell Malen scored twice in the final minute of the first half to steal the victory. After Antony had tied the game in the second half, another defensive lapse led to Youssoufa Moukoko’s game-winning goal.
Ten Hag used a reserve team, starting Harry Maguire, Donny van de Beek, and Facundo Pellistri, although he will be disappointed with the number of mistakes that led to Dortmund goals.
The Dutchman also made a statement with his choice of captain, giving it to Scott McTominay despite the participation of Harry Maguire and only a week after taking it away from England’s defender Bruno Fernandes in favor of someone else.
United began off well and took the lead midway through the first half when Dalot collected Van de Beek’s lay-off on the edge of the box and calmly steered the ball into the corner.
After 30 minutes, though, the game started to swing in Dortmund’s favor. After getting into a fight with Julian Ryerson and Karim Adeyemi, the youngster Omari Forson was taken off the field and replaced.
As the 19-year-old left the field, he was cheered on by McTominay and Christian Eriksen, but he received an almost minute-long reprimand from Ten Hag on the sidelines.
Unfortunately for United, they allowed two early goals to Dortmund before halftime due to poor defence.
Malen scored from close range after Brandon Williams was fooled on the left and the ball was pushed into the penalty area.
Then, 18 seconds after the restart, Malen scored his second to make it 2-1 after former United midfielder Marcel Sabitzer scored an assist.
United came close to having a worse second half than the first.
Maguire put Eriksen in a tough position, and Dortmund nearly added a third before halftime substitute André Onana made a brilliant stop from Sébastien Haller. Even though Onana had only been with the team for two weeks, he felt comfortable enough to rush out of his goal and yell at Maguire.
United had just escaped falling behind 3-1 when Mats Hummels threw the ball away inside his own penalty area, and Antony calmly finished off the rebound with a shot into the far corner.
After 60 minutes, Ten Hag substituted his starters, but Dortmund took advantage of another United defensive miscue to take the lead and win.
This time, however, Aaron Wan-Bissaka carelessly gave the ball away, and the Bundesliga club’s victory was sealed when Marco Reus crossed for Moukoko, who scored by beating Onana.
