4 saves, 4 high claims: superb United loanee makes spectacular return to form

13/03/2024 09:49

Manchester United’s young keeper Radek Vitek put in a fantastic display as Accrington Stanley came away from Swindon with all three points in the bag yesterday.

After a magnificent start where he kept three clean sheets in his first four matches, the last few games have been a bit of a lesson about life in the professional leagues for the 20 year old.

Heavy defeats to Bradford and Wrexham are evidence of that, where he conceded a total of seven goals.

However, the young Czech keeper bounced back with a fine display to help his side claim a first win in a month.

Accrington only had 41% of the ball but only had one shot less than the hosts in an even match.

The Youth Cup winning keeper’s best intervention was an outstanding athletic save that saw him make a stunning one handed stop, parrying the ball to safety.

Unfortunately, shortly after, a mix-up in the ‘Owd Reds defence from a corner allowed Swindon Town’s Aaron Drinan to smash home from close range, giving the United keeper no time to react at all.

However, the side from the Crown Ground reacted well as they won and scored a penalty and a late Alex Henderson rocket sealed the points for the away side.

Sofascore were certainly impressed by Vitek as they gave him a score of 7.6.

The giant keeper made four saves, two of which came from shots inside the penalty area.

He was also able to make four high claims and three clearances as he protected his goalmouth with maturity and in a manner well beyond his young years.

The keeper also completed 100% of his run outs where he had to come racing off his goal to clear the ball to safety. The signing of Andre Onana and likely direction INEOS will take the football at the club is with a modern sweeper keeper type, so if Vitek is to make it at United, he will need to perfect this aspect of his game.

In an overall impressive display from the academy player, the only drawback of the evening was his work on the ball. He only had a 38% pass accuracy and only connected with four out of his 24 long ball attempts.

However, in a night where all that mattered for Accrington was the three points, the long ball was an effective tactic.

Stanley have moved up to 15th in the table and now have collected 49 points for the season. They still sit 11 points from the last playoff spot with nine games left to play.

Next up for Vitek and his loan side is a home tie against Notts County where they will aim to extend their winning streak and push themselves towards the top half of the table.

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