The Stats Behind Man Utd’s Historically Bad 2024–25 Season | OneFootball

Manchester United’s 2024–25 season concluded on a positive note at home to Aston Villa, but their impressive final day victory has no hope of masking what’s been an abhorrent campaign.

The Red Devils continue to sink to new depths in a post-Sir Alex Ferguson world. Such plummets, like those endured under Ralf Rangnick, Erik ten Hag and now Ruben Amorim, mean the underwhelming reigns of José Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjær are suddenly yearned for.

Many expected 2023–24 to be United’s Premier League nadir, but 2024–25 ventured into a fresh realm of humiliation. Ten Hag’s inevitable sacking arrived in the autumn, but talented successor Amorim has struggled to grasp and control Manchester’s poisoned chalice.

It’s been awful, but there’s hope that the worst of it has been bypassed. Here are a few stats which show just how bad things were for Manchester United this season.

Lowest Ever Premier League Points Tally

United amassed just 42 points from 38 games. / IMAGO/Pro Sports Images

Amorim said in January that his team were maybe the “worst” in the club’s 147-year history. The latest iteration of the Red Devils didn’t quite sink to the murky depths of the 1930–31 team, who would’ve earned 29 points in a 42-game campaign had three points been awarded for a win, but this side will undoubtedly be remembered as the most dire in United’s modern history.

Their 2–0 win over Champions League hopefuls Villa on the final day meant United finished with 42 points from their 38 games. Their previous lowest Premier League points haul was the meagre 58 they accumulated during a tumultuous 2021–22 campaign dominated by Cristiano Ronaldo’s homecoming.

United were unable to usurp that tally when they were thumped 4–1 at St. James’ Park in mid-April. This team was confirmed as United’s worst with more than a month of the season remaining. Their total of 18 league defeats are the most since the 1973–74 season when they were relegated to the second tier after losing 20 times.

Old Trafford Woes

Man Utd suffered nine league defeats at home. / IMAGO/Action Plus

Old Trafford was once a daunting destination for visiting teams, where away victories were deemed no more than collector’s items. However, in recent years, the Theatre of Dreams has been used by opponents to break lengthy droughts.

Teams that haven’t won away at Manchester United in decades have broken droughts, and the ease at which some have prevailed at Old Trafford renders such victories borderline futile. While historic for some, winning at United no longer feels significant. It’s expected.

The Red Devils avoided a record 10th home defeat in the Premier League this season on the final day, but their haul of nine is the joint-most in the club’s history.

Only the three relegated teams scored fewer goals at home than United (23).

Worse Under Ruben Amorim

Amorim failed to oversee any improvement after taking the job in November. / IMAGO/Colorsport

When Marcus Rashford scored in the opening minutes at Portman Road, United seemed destined to enjoy the phenomenon that is the ‘new manager bounce’ at the start of an exciting new dawn with Amorim in charge.

However, Omari Hutchinson’s equaliser thrust the Red Devils back to reality, and although there were glimmers of promise early on under Ten Hag’s successor, things quickly petered out and eventually worsened.

United were 14th when the Dutchman departed having won three of their opening nine Premier League games. They ended the season in 15th with Amorim overseeing seven wins from 27 games in charge. The Portuguese’s current points-per-game rate of 1.00 is currently the lowest among all Man Utd managers in Premier League history, and his win rate of 25.9% is also the worst.

Out of the managers who took on Premier League jobs during the season, only Leicester’s Ruud van Nistelrooy and Southampton’s Ivan Jurić boast poorer points-per-game records. Graham Potter, David Moyes and Vitor Pereira all bettered Amorim at the start of their tenures.

Bad in Both Boxes

Man Utd underperformed in front of goal. / IMAGO/AOP.Press

The concession of 54 goals is their joint-third worst defensive record in Premier League history, but United’s inability to score proved more damaging. They mustered a record-low 44 goals in the competition this season, usurping the 49 Louis van Gaal’s dull outfit mustered in 2015–16.

While United hardly excelled from a chance creation perspective, the underlying numbers suggest they woefully underperformed in front of goal. Their 56.91 expected goals haul (via Understat) ranked 13th-highest in the division, but their underperformance of 12.91 was only topped by Bournemouth (14.62) and Crystal Palace (16.78). Of the 12 players who scored at least one Premier League goal, only three outperformed their xG.

As a result of their profligacy, Man Utd missed out on at least 10 points based on Understat’s metrics. They finished 12th in the Premier League with 52.24 expected points.