Brandon Williams blows hot and cold as Manchester United held back by Storm Dennis

On a wet and windy night in Bruges in the wake of Storm Dennis, Brandon Williams tried to resist the inevitable. He was not intimidated – not by the home fans’s Peaky Blinders themed flags, nor their renditions of ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ before the game. But as his teammates were thrown one way by an extraordinary natural force, they were ultimately held back by a Nigerian striker of the same name. Williams was not without blame, but a greater problem here was his side’s ill-thought-out design.

Williams’s ascent to the United first team has been rapid and quite unexpected and his number 53 billowed in the wind, a stark reminder of the teenager’s place in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s thinking at the start of his campaign. He found himself in a slightly unusual position, flitting between wing-back and midfield, unable to truly commit offensively or defensively, a problem compounded further by his status as a naturally right-footed player operating on the left hand side.

Though in the early stages his execution wasn’t always precise, Williams’s ambition was clear from the off as he went about sensing the space in front of him and making probing runs into it. Brugge created a clear chance in the early stages when Williams was down injured, his temporary absence from the game causing the visitors a world of problems. Luke Shaw, once signed for £30 million but now forced out of his normal position into centre-back, dived in rashly without success.

Williams sprinted back when needed to cover and bombed forward to provide United’s anaemic central midfield an option when in possession. When Simon Mignolet’s long ball forward arrowed towards Brugge forward Dennis in the 15th minute, Sergio Romero rushed out of his goal for no apparent reason with Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof caught up the pitch and Williams’s best efforts were not enough to prevent the striker finding the back of the net. Diogo Dalot had failed to deal with the initial run of Dennis, and it was left to the most inexperienced of the three to try and mop up a bad situation.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s system looked ragged and ill-prepared despite its effectiveness earlier in the week against Chelsea. Acres of space would open up between Shaw and Williams, with Philippe Clement’s side only too eager to expose it on the break. The problem seemed to affect Williams, who started to butcher simple passes in perhaps one of his worst 45-minutes in a red shirt.

Williams’s fellow defenders, including captain Maguire, repeatedly failed to offer the left-back the calming guidance he would have doubtlessly cherished. The men in the middle of the pitch for the visitors were anonymous, as they so often have been in recent years. Only Anthony Martial stepped up in the first-half, equalising against the run of play. Williams showed good intent to get in a promising position in the box, but his finish was wayward.

Early on in the second, the same frustrations were on show again. Williams won possession well and looked for a one-two with Jesse Lingard on the break but was let down by a poor return pass.

The playing conditions settled for the most part as the game neared an end, and so did Williams and co, but much of the damage was already done. Kossounou should have put the hosts ahead late on after more good work from Dennis up against Shaw, with Williams stranded on the half-way line. His positional ambiguity means it would be unfair to single out the novice as the root cause of a disappointing performance from United as a collective, and their under-fire coach.

Indeed if there is one particular area of weakness in Gareth Southgate’s England squad, with Euro 2020 fast approaching, it is at left-back. Ben Chilwell, himself not in the best of form, is England’s only reliable option in that position. Shaw has never truly recovered from the appalling leg break he suffered against PSV Eindhoven in September 2015. Danny Rose, loaned out by Spurs to struggling Newcastle, looks a shadow of the fine player he once was. That leaves only Ashley Young, now 34, Bukayo Saka, an 18-year-old natural winger, or a wild-card like Matt Targett as the only remotely viable alternatives.

Perhaps that man can still be Williams. The 19-year-old is inexperienced, as was highlighted today, but has generally impressed United staff and fans alike with his attitude and performances. The teenager is blessed with pace and is the sort of dynamic full-back that would fit in nicely within Southgate’s young and energetic side. He’s earned plaudits from Gary Lineker and Gary Neville, the latter remarking that Williams has the “look in his eye of someone that would eat his opponent’s nose to win the match.”

But if he is to break into Southgate’s squad, Williams will need to have a more clearly defined role in a more coherent set-up as the season progresses. The 19-year-old need look no further than directly to his right at Shaw tonight to see a cautionary tale of a young attack-minded full-back who, partly through serious misfortune, has been utterly blown off course.