Manchester United showed some late ingenuity to pull off a thrilling 2-1 win over Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
While the hosts maintained the majority share of possession early on, United kept up the pressure, marking tightly. Lisandro Martinez did well to beat Erling Haaland to a header, putting the ball out for a corner that the defence easily dealt with.
Six minutes in, United launched a promising counter, however, Mason Mount’s cross was a poor one, easily caught by the goalkeeper.
Bruno Fernandes later picked out Diogo Dalot on the left, who had plenty of space. Dalot’s cross into the box was a poor one, floating out for a goal kick. While United showed decent build-up play, they seemed to be struggling to produce the finishing product upon entering the final third.
14 minutes in, disaster struck for Mason Mount as he fell to the floor in discomfort. Ruben Amorim had little option other than to take off the injury-prone player, replacing him with Kobbie Mainoo.
In the 20th minute, Phil Foden took the first shot of the match. The City winger’s long-range effort breezed wide of the near post. Onana must have been relieved, given that he appeared rooted to the spot.
A minute later, Foden attempted a close-range shot that Harry Maguire expertly blocked.
In the 24th minute, United got their best scoring opportunity yet when Amad Diallo burst forward to receive a Kobbie Mainoo through ball. Unfortunately, the pressure was too much as Amad put his shot past both the keeper and the near post.
Just as Bernardo Silva appeared to break through the United defence, dribbling three players, Bruno Fernandes came to the rescue, sliding in to intercept the ball.
After half an hour, United were away on another counter-attack, however, Amad was unable to shoot as the City defence were quick to track back. The ball was dragged back to Martinez, whose shot was blocked, while Manuel Ugarte’s follow-up effort flew well over the top.
Jeremy Doku received the ball on the edge of the box, but Mazraoui did well to block his effort. United’s fortune changed in the corner that followed, with Josko Gvardiol scoring with a header. While Dalot was in front of Gvardiol and unable to reach the high ball, Hojlund was sandwiched between him and Gvardiol, allowing the City defender the space and time he needed to score.
Moments after the restart, United were on the counter, yet Kyle Walker fouled Hojlund before he could proceed. The Dane went toe-to-toe with Walker out of frustration, with the City captain feigning contact and falling to the ground. Even though Walker clearly faked being headbutted by Hojlund, both players received a yellow card.
Three minutes into four minutes of stoppage time, Foden came inches within scoring. His long-range effort brushed Maguire’s boot, veering just wide of the post.
With no accurate shots as of yet, United were clearly lacking the final product, often hesitating and appearing sluggish within City’s final third. Amorim needed to take time to determine how best to alter United’s attacking play in order to find a way back into the match against a home side that was clearly far from their best.
The opening minutes of the second half were marked by poor passing and cohesion by United, continuously losing possession.
Kobbie Mainoo and Amad Diallo both carried the ball into the box during seperate build-ups, but the City defence did well to shut them down with minimal stress.
Fernandes floated a threatening cross into the box after the hour mark, with Amad heading the ball toward the bottom corner. Unfortunately, Ederson performed a full-stretch save to deny the winger. It was the closest United came yet to scoring.
With little over 13 minutes to play, Antony came on for Mazraoui while Leny Yoro replaced Matthijs de Ligt. Joshua Zirkzee replaced Hojlund.
Six minutes from time, Martinez drilled a cross to Mainoo, whose headed effort went over the top.
Moments later, Matheus Nunes clashed with Amad with a rough challenge, bringing him down in the box for a late penalty.
Fernandes looked cool as a cucumber as he stepped up to take the spot kick. The United captain hit it hard and true toward the right post, sending the keeper the wrong way to hand United the equaliser.
One minute from time, United sparked to life. Martinez picked out Amad with a stunning long ball. From there, he burst past the keeper, lobbing the ball up before slotting it into the net from a tight angle on the left. A magical piece of football from the youngster.
Amad was then replaced by Victor Lindelof, with Amorim clearly looking to safeguard United’s lead as five minutes of added time were announced.
It was an impressive win for United, not to mention a precious three points away from home. While United struggled for much of the match, Amorim’s men showed great character near the end to pull off an unlikely win.
Starting XI: Onana, Mazraoui, De Ligt, Maguire, Martinez, Mount, Fernandes, Hojlund, Amad, Dalot, Ugarte
Subs: Mainoo, Antony, Yoro, Zirkzee, Lindelof
Featured image Carl Recine via Getty Images
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Mathew Cohen
A faithful Manchester United supporter, Mathew has worked as a football writer and analyst for SB Nation, FanSided, and now The Peoples Person. Mathew’s heroes include David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Sir Alex Ferguson, all of whom played their part in creating some special childhood memories.
