Manchester United came from behind to thrash Real Sociedad 4-1 in their Europa League Round of 16 second-leg tie at Old Trafford on Thursday to secure progress to the quarterfinals thanks to a 5-2 aggregate victory.
The Red Devils will face Olympique Lyon in the last eight stage in what promises to be another blockbuster game. For now, Ruben Amorim will be delighted with his team’s response despite going down by a goal after yet another VAR howler.
Matthijs de Ligt was penalized wrongly by VAR even after the referee initially waved play on just like in the first leg. With the visitors taking control of the tie, fans would have expected the worst given the team’s fragility in recent times.
Instead, the team roared into action with Rasmus Hojlund winning a penalty six minutes later. It was a soft call but the hosts deserved some luck given their recent run-ins with VAR.
Dorgu, Zirkzee on fire
Skipper Bruno Fernandes made no mistake from the spot. The home side should have scored a couple more before half-time but for some lax finishing.
United took complete charge of the game when Jon Aramburu saw red for tackling Patrick Dorgu from behind with the Dane running clean through on goal.
And after that it was smooth sailing with the wingback winning another penalty moments later, which the club captain converted without hesitation.
The 20-year-old was not done there as he seemingly won yet another penalty before the 90 minutes were up only to tell the referee to overturn his decision. It was great sportsman spirit shown by the ex-Lecce star.
Fernandes might have been denied the chance to net a hat-trick from the spot but he made matters sure in the 87th minute with a fine strike from the edge of the box.
Diogo Dalot then got in on the act to ensure a fantastic win, arguably the best display from the 20-time English league champions under Amorim.
Zirkzee, Dorgu on the same side created havoc
Joshua Zirkzee ran the show at times while Dorgu was unstoppable. Amorim wanted a striker in January but when he was told the club did not have the funds to land one, he insisted INEOS to go after the Denmark international.
What a choice it has proven to be with his fearless style of play suiting Amorim’s 3-4-3 style to the T. Now for the club to address the opposite flank in the summer.
Zirkzee’s impact since dropping into the No 10 position has been remarkable to see and Amorim now has two undroppables. Both work great in tandem, especially when playing on the same flank.
Alejandro Garnacho has often overlooked him in favour of going on his own when playing on the same side which is why Amorim decided to play the Dutchman on the left this time around as he loves to link up play.
After two brave displays back-to-back, can Amorim get this United team to show some consistency? Only time will tell.
Feature image Gareth Copley via Getty Images
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Ayantan Chowdhury
Ayantan has worked for 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites but his heart was always set on writing about his favourite club. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25
