The Red Devils only need one point to ensure their return to Europe’s elite competition after a forgettable performance against West Ham.
If you had offered Ole Gunnar Solskjaer the opportunity to go to Leicester on the last day with the sole need to avoid defeat to secure Champions League football in early 2020, he would definitely have taken advantage of it.
The gradual closure of United’s gap in the top four in the Premier League came to a conclusion on Wednesday when the Red Devils crawled over the Fox at the ideal time.
But if his slow performance against West Ham was worthwhile, then United will need to improve massively at King Power Stadium in just four days to get the job done.
As he has repeatedly done this period, Mason Greenwood stepped forward when the older ones around him were struggling.
The 18-year-old, who has been compared to Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo and Robin van Persie at various stages during his groundbreaking campaign, continues to rewrite the log books at Old Trafford.
His left-footed shot in the sixth minute in the second half after a good connection with Anthony Martial made him the first English teenager to score 10 goals in a single campaign since Rooney did it in 2004-05, while only Michael Owen equaled that achievement at a younger age.
Greenwood’s goal was the highlight of his 50th first-team appearance for United, with the Bradford-born striker as the youngest player since Ryan Giggs to reach that milestone.
He has struggled in his most recent early days, but after being sidelined by the FA Cup loss to Chelsea on Sunday, he seemed a bit cooler, with a move in which he dismissed four West Ham defenders before Playing on Martial during the first half is particularly striking.
However, the same cannot be said for his teammates.
Solskjaer named most of his preferred starting lineup against the Irons, with only full running back Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Luke Shaw missing in the XI that started five straight games in the past few weeks.
And despite dominating possession for the first 45 minutes, they struggled to create clear opportunities before Paul Pogba handled Declan Rice’s free kick into the box, with Michail Antonio in form converting from the spot.
It didn’t take long for United to equalize after the break, but from then on they rarely tested Lukasz Fabianski in the visitors’ goal.
In fact, it was David de Gea at the other end who had to be on edge to deny Jarred Bowen in the final stages, and the Spain international returned faith that his manager had been retained after his horror show in Wembley.
Even Bruno Fernandes, who has been flawless since his arrival in January, was missing passes in the end. The Portuguese almost let his frustrations get over him when he faced Mark Noble. It was one of those afternoons for United.
The hope now is that they can shake off what has been a disappointing week and finish the job in the East Midlands on Sunday.
Brendan Rodgers’ team will likely have to win to secure a top-four finish, which can play in the hands of United. Still, a victory over David Moyes’ team would have meant that they could at least have come with more cushioning than they have now.
Solskjaer was scratching his head when Wednesday’s 1-1 draw came into injury time, and he must find a way to refresh his weary team.
Greenwood, despite all his talent, is only 18 years old. He can’t be trusted to produce a moment of magic every week, and others will have to step up to the biggest game of the United campaign.
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