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Marcus Rashford’s deflected goal in injury time secured Manchester United a close victory against Wolves and ensured that Ole Gunnar Solskjær‘s men start 2021 seconds in the Premier League.
The match was the teams’ fourth meeting in 2020 and it looked like it would end with them sharing a third goalless draw as the hectic holiday schedule took its toll. But United dug deep and pulled off a late winner at an empty Old Trafford, with Rashford crowning a year to remember, on and off the pitch, by sealing a 1-0 win in death.
In a sign of Solskjær’s confidence in his team, there were six changes from the Boxing Day draw in Leicester, the most striking being Edinson Cavani’s preference at No. 9 over Anthony Martial.
For Wolves, after a draw with Tottenham, there were four changes from Nuno Espírito Santo, including Ki – Jana Hoever, the 18-year-old defender making his Premier League debut.
United’s hopes of extending their unbeaten streak through victory seemed bright judging by the skillful interaction from the start. Here passed Paul Pogba, Bruno Fernandes, Mason Greenwood and Alex Telles and approached the goal of Rui Patricio with intention. Rashford then embarked on two runs that brought him into a shooting position, but none of the subsequent attempts bothered Patrick.
The wolves then had a turn to bring the contest to United. Adama Traoré, operating in attack with Pedro Neto, burned the center of the field of the premises and deflected a pass for the latter, which David de Gea unloaded and saved. Vitinha then overtook Pogba and retested the No. 1, this effort as easy to tackle as the last.
However, these were sure signs of pressure from Wolves that intensified when confusion between De Gea and Eric Bailly allowed Traore to withdraw the ball from the left to Ruben Neves – this time the shot was fierce and United’s number one. I reject it. with both fists.
All of this worried Solskjær enough to make a rare foray into the technical area where he stayed, urging his team to take the ball and stay there. It worked, for a while. The problem, however, was an air of indifference to attacks that were heavy and little else. An illustration was found on a Greenwood aimless pass from the right that couldn’t find Cavani and a Rashford heel that was deflected from Alex Telles on the opposite flank.
United’s best was a Rashford dart to the baseline that heralded Telles’s cross brushing Cavani’s head with Patrick’s wide-open goal. Here was a flash of the rhythm that was lacking in much of the home team’s preparation. This meant that the Wolves were able to move behind the ball with ease and block their opponent, so it was instructive that when Patricio saved his line from an effort by Fernandes this stemmed from a quick ball from Greenwood.
At halftime, the Lobos had been reduced to the odd counterattack, as when Neto won a free throw he took the shot himself. Now De Gea earned his money, with mercury reflections to push Saiss’s attempt.
After a Fernandes ball over Rashford gave nothing, Neto missed a golden opportunity to play in Traoré: each moment summed up half.
For the second half, Luke Shaw replaced Telles as United’s left back and his initial action was to stand on a dead ball that Fernandes hit from the left, and the Wolves relaxed this clearing.
If Solskjær had briefed his men in the interval to sharpen his act, the sight of Pogba’s clumsy touch almost halfway through would have dismayed them. And if there was a noticeable increase in vocal intensity, both teams contributed here with cheers of encouragement, the quality still remained below average. Hoping to improve the Wolves’ caliber, Espirito Santo brought in Daniel Podence for Vitinha, but it was still United who were doing most of the snorting.
When Fernandes fails to turn United on, he usually suffers and this is how he proved. The Portuguese were having a rare night where the spins, spins, passes and races were sinking, so Solskjær asked for Marcial. Greenwood was replaced by the French, but since United had created few opportunities, Rashford and Cavani could have been hooked as well. Play continued in a pattern of United dominance and little else.
Now came the penalty claim rejected by the VAR. It came after a Cavani shot from a corner was chalked offside, before Bailly’s header hit Coady’s hand, but Coady escaped.
