'Robot' Matthijs De Ligt accused of 'creating issues' for Man Utd after 'obscene' £43m transfer from Bayern Munich

United's woes deepened on Sunday afternoon following a disappointing 1-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspur, leaving them down in 15th in the Premier League standings. A 13th-minute goal from James Maddison was enough to secure the win for Ange Postecoglou’s side, while the Red Devils succumbed to their 12th league defeat of the campaign in 25 matches.

De Ligt once again found himself under scrutiny, with Arsenal legend Keown criticising the Dutch centre-back for his continued poor run of form. The talkSPORT pundit believes that De Ligt's decision-making is putting unnecessary pressure on the team as he argued that the defender has only added to United’s problems rather than solving them.

"Look at De Ligt, the amount of money they spent on him by the way is almost obscene for a centre half," Keown said on talkSPORT.

"He’s playing like a robot. There’s times he can clear the ball and he puts it out for a corner. He just creates issues for the team. Ruben Amorim needs to empower him with confidence, I’m not seeing any of that with him."

Keown is not the only one questioning De Ligt’s ability to thrive at Old Trafford, the former Red Devils midfielder Paul Scholes has also raised doubts about whether the Dutchman has actually improved as a player since his breakthrough at Ajax. Scholes, speaking on The Overlap Fan Debate brought to you by Sky Bet, said: "He was brilliant at Ajax, he seems to be getting worse as he gets older. Bayern Munich, and Juventus, they've let him go for some reason. Where are your ambitions? I'm talking about getting a team to win the Premier League. Are you going to win the Premier League with De Ligt and (Leny) Yoro as your centre halves?"

While the club continues to struggle for consistency, much of the focus will remain on whether De Ligt can rediscover the form that once made him one of Europe’s most promising young defenders. And with Everton up next at Goodison Park, a resurgent Toffees side under former United boss David Moyes could make things even more difficult for the Red Devils.