Manchester United secured three vital Premier League points on Sunday with a hard fought win against Fulham at Craven Cottage.
The game wont live long in the memory and took a deflected long range effort from Lisandro Martinez to break the deadlock in the latter stages of the second half.
However, it was a much needed win for Amorim’s men and Martinez’s late strike was a fine personal moment for him in a game he has recent history in.
United won the reverse fixture by the same score line on the opening day of the season with Martinez coming out on top in his personal battle with Fulham powerhouse Adama Traore on the night.
That win prompted the United man to take a swipe at Traore in his post match interview, telling Sky Sports he “sent him (Traore) to the gym”.
The Fulham attacker responded at the time with a “don’t worry, we will meet again,” message via social media and the pair were expected to collide on Sunday.
Collide they did with Martinez perhaps lucky to escape punishment for a rather crude looking challenge on the Spaniard after his introduction as a second half substitute.
The pair exchanged a push and a shove after the incident that occurred just moments before Martinez lashed home the games only goal.
Martinez enjoyed an all round excellent 90 minutes and certainly proved himself a match for Traore once more despite the apparent strength advantage the forward possesses.
Despite the Martinez showing, Traore wasn’t willing to to put a line under the personal beef the pair are developing and posted a photo of himself with Martinez on the floor after the weekend fixture.
Adama Traore deserves a forever fulham already pic.twitter.com/fpSN1IR28R
— Kevin (@kevintence) January 27, 2025
The post included the caption “Tough loss. We deserved more, but we will keep working hard and improving.”
Traore’s Instagram post was clearly not lost on United star Amad Diallo who would have doubled his side’s lead on the night had it not been for a hairline VAR intervention in stoppage time.
The Ivorian posted a a GIF of Martinez winking in clear reference to his match winner and spat with the Fulham man.
https://t.co/sEkQEOo3QA pic.twitter.com/DO8srRIu9G
— Amad (@Amaddiallo_19) January 26, 2025
It’s evident spirits are high in the United dressing room and the team will now look to build on the notable victory against Marco Silva’s men which was their fifth win from six in 2025, including the FA Cup shootout success against Arsenal.
Amorim’s men are back in action on Thursday night as they travel to Bucharest for the last league game of the Europa League, knowing a draw will be enough to guarantee them automatic qualification to the round of 16.
Featured image Clive Rose via Getty Images
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Conner Botterill
Conner Botterill has been with The Peoples Person for two years. A keen match-going red with degrees in Sport and Journalism and Philosophy and Psychology, Conner still believes he has a chance of making United’s first team through his 5-a-side career.
