Manchester United beat Sunderland 2-0 in what was an uncommonly dominant display from Ruben Amorim’s men this afternoon.
Man United appeared in control from start to finish, giving the visitors little room to pose any danger.
Having lost 3-1 to Brentford last weekend, Man United were desperate to return to winning ways, particularly in front of their home crowd against a recently-promoted side.
Still, a win was far from guaranteed, with Sunderland punching well above their weight in the Premier League. They won three and drew two of their first six games to rise to an impressive fifth place.
First half
United got the match off to a cool and composed start, allowing debutante goalkeeper Senne Lammens a few touches of the ball in order to adjust to his new life at Old Trafford.
While the visitors looked lively, bursting down the left flank, United maintained their offside trap, with the referee blowing the whistle to bring play to an end once Simon Adingra burst forward to chase down Granit Xhaka’s pass.
Suddenly, in the eighth minute, United found a sensational breakthrough. Bryan Mbeumo passed the ball from the right to Mason Mount in the centre, who intricately controlled the ball and side-footed a surgically precise shot past the defender’s leg and out of the keeper’s reach into the bottom right corner. An excellent goal from Mount to hand United an early 1-0 lead.
This goal clearly rattled Sunderland, who sought to increase their possession yet struggled to maintain control of the ball, enabling the home side to break down their build-ups with ease.
In the 21st minute, Amad Diallo took a threatening shot from the edge of the box, cutting into the centre before curling the ball toward the far post, only for the keeper to deny him.
Barely a minute later, Mbeumo took a shot from outside the box, soaring toward the bottom left corner of the post, only for Robin Roefs to deny the home team yet again.
In the 25th minute, Bruno Fernandes lobbed a fabulous shot toward the top corner, only for Roefs to get his fingertips to the ball to tip it onto the crossbar. Amad headed the rebound goalward only for the ball to drift wide of the mark.
On the half-hour mark, Benjamin Sesko continued his scoring form with his first goal at Old Trafford. A long throw by Diogo Dalot almost for Leny Yoro, only for a defender to get his head to the ball first. Still, Sesko was perfectly positioned to pounce on the loose ball, tapping it into the net to double United’s lead. Manager Ruben Amorim would have no doubt been chuffed with how the towering striker has been adjusting to life at Old Trafford.
Two minutes from the break, Lammens was called into action for the first time in a United jersey. Xhaka took a threatening shot from the edge of the box that was hurtling toward the right post. Lammens pulled off a sublime dive at full stretch to deny the Sunderland captain, exhibiting his desire to make his mark in front of the Old Trafford crowd.
In the last of the three minutes of stoppage time, Sunderland fans called for a penalty. Sesko raised his leg to kick an incoming cross, only for Trai Hume to go down clutching his head. With no contact being made with the head, the referee had to conduct an on-field review of the incident.
After leaving the television screen on the sidelines, the referee determined that no foul had been made.
The referee blew the half-time whistle, with United going into the break with a comfortable lead. Amorim would have no doubt felt proud of his team’s gutsy performance so far.
Second half
It was a subdued start to the second half, with neither team appearing particularly threatening. Both sides continuously struggled to establish any midfield dominance.
Ten minutes after the break, Sunderland’s Traore went down in the box after what appeared to be a clash with Lammens. The referee was on high alert, however, booking the attacker for what was clearly a simulation.
In the 65th minute, Mount came off for Mathues Cunha, while Dalot was replaced by Patrick Dorgu.
Four minutes later, Amad went on a decent run, dribbling into the box and laying the ball off to Casemiro. Despite being completely open, the Brazilian ruined an ideal goalscoring opportunity by thumping the ball far over the crossbar.
With 15 minutes left on the clock, Mbeumo was taken off for Kobbie Mainoo.
Casemiro earned a yellow card for what was a reckless challenge on Brian Brobbey.
In the 83rd minute, Cunha made a promising run into the box, only for the ball to be cleered out from under his feet before he could shoot to hand United a corner.
Cunha got on the end of Fernandes’ cross, only to direct his ball ever so wide of the far post.
Right after the ball went out of play, Amorim made his final two substitutions of the match, taking off Casemiro and Yoro for Manuel Ugarte and Harry Maguire. Clearly, Amorim did not want Casemiro to receive another booking and get sent off.
With one minute to go, Cunha attempted a speculative effort, cutting into the box and thumping a shot that the keeper managed to catch.
Just as five minutes of added time were announced, Sunderland launched a rare attack. Chemsdine Talbi took a close-range shot to force an impressive leg save from Lammens.
Seconds later, the visitors fired a threatening cross into the box that Lammens bravely rose to collect. What a signing he is proving himself to be.
It was a fantastic performance by United, who appeared confident and hungry for goals throughout the encounter. Most notably, Lammens enjoyed an impressive debut, filling fans with hope that their club has finally found its keeper.
Starting XI: Lammens, Dalot, De Ligt, Mount, Fernandes, Yoro, Amad, Casemiro, Mbeumo, Shaw, Sesko
Subs: Cunha, Dorgu, Mainoo, Ugarte, Maguire
Featured image Gareth Copley via Getty Images
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