I can't believe what I've just watched from Sir Alex Ferguson...
Sir Alex Ferguson has declared that Aston Villa played Newcastle 'off the pitch' on Saturday and only lost due to a few too many defensive lapses.
The 81-year-old was at Old Trafford last night for Man Utd's opening game of the season - a fortunate 1-0 win over Wolves - and briefly joined NBC Sports' panel to share his thoughts on the first few matches of 2023/24.
Asked which team had impressed him the most so far, he picked out Aston Villa. Yes, the side who were pumped 5-1 at St James' Park on Saturday! He "can't believe the scoreline", feeling Unai Emery's side "played fantastic football" and only lost to "bad goals" conceded at the other end.
There's really no need to break down the stats - the scoreline says enough - but we had more shots, more shots on target, more possession, completed more passes and won more corners than Villa. In truth, it could've been more than five in the end! We're just a few days into the new season, but you'll do well to find a worse take all year.
Watch what he had to say below:
“To be honest with you, I watched Aston Villa and Newcastle and I can’t believe the scoreline.
"Honestly, Aston Villa played fantastic football and just lost bad goals. Newcastle are going to be very difficult to beat at their home ground and the manager has done a great job there.
"But a surprising game, you can play teams off the pitch and not score and that’s what happened to Villa.”
