Manchester United brushed aside their 7-0 humiliation against Liverpool by taking charge of their Europa League last 16 first-leg clash against Real Betis, defeating the La Liga side 4-1 at Old Trafford.

Erik ten Hag must be praised for bouncing back from their Anfield disappointment and the result certainly sets them up well for the second leg.

Before that, however, there is a Premier League tie against Southampton to negotiate and with the Saints fighting to retain their top-flight status, it could be a tricky tie for United.

There will likely be some changes for the match, with a few of the side underperforming against Betis and with the club still in three competitions, Ten Hag must rotate his squad.

One such player was Fred, and he should be ditched against the south coast side this afternoon.

Will Fred start for Manchester United against Southampton?

His performance against Betis wasn’t his finest in a United shirt. The Brazilian midfielder received a Sofascore rating of 6.4/10, which ranked him as the worst player on the pitch for the Red Devis on the night.

He completed just 26 passes, had one shot, failed with both his dribble attempts, and lost ten duels during the tie and it is a surprise United still won as convincingly as they did so while he was clearly a passenger in the middle of the park.

The dud hasn’t exactly displayed his true talent in the Premier League either this term as the Brazil international has struggled for form in the division.

The £120k-per-week player ranks outside the top ten when it comes to overall Sofascore rating in the league this season (11th) while the lightweight also ranks out with the top ten for accurate passes (15th), interceptions (11th), and shots on target per match (13th), which suggests that he has underperformed since ten Hag took charge.

Following his poor display against Leicester City - in which Gary Neville dubbed him "sloppy" during Sky's live broadcast - last month, Manchester Evening News writer Samuel Luckhurst described it as “another nightmare” performance and it would be no surprise if the Dutchman drops him to the bench today.

Having just turned 30 at the start of the month, you have to wonder, how long does he have left at United if the midfielder continues to produce disappointing performances on a weekly basis?