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Monday 07 April 2025 21:14
Manchester United Under-21s were held to a 3-3 draw in our Premier League 2 meeting with Nottingham Forest at Leigh Sports Village.
The young Reds took the lead shortly after kick-off through Bendito Mantato, who tapped home the opener from close range.
Forest levelled the game 20 minutes later, but Chido Obi ensured the Reds went into the interval ahead with a close-quarters finish.
He notched again on the other side of the break to extend our lead, but the visitors clawed two back late on through Kyle McAdam and Adam Berry to claim a point.
Sekou Kone was a key presence in United’s midfield.
Just three minutes had gone by when Mantato provided United with a one-goal advantage. The move was started from midfield with Sekou Kone lifting a ball over the Forest defence for Jack Moorhouse to chase. The latter got there first and managed to feed the ball across goal for our no.7 to tap in.
Chances for both sides followed. Obi was kept out by the strong palm of Keehan Willows in the Forest goal and Elyh Harrison did well to deny Jimmy Sinclair at the other end two minutes later.
But the Reds’ gloveman was unable to prevent Zyan Blake slotting in the equaliser in the 26th minute, the Forest forward provided a one-on-one through team-mate Jack Nadin’s pass across the box.
Mantato then turned provider just before the half-time whistle, racing to the byline before feeding a pass across to Obi who squeezed our second beyond Willows.
Obi carried his first-half momentum through the break and emerged to notch his second, and United’s third, early in the second period.
Driving through the middle of the pitch from just past the halfway line, he twisted and turned as he reached the edge of Forest’s box and managed to find a gap to drill his effort into the bottom-left corner of the goal.
Forest managed to claw one back in the last 10 minutes when McAdam flicked the ball over the head of an on-rushing Harrison, and substitute Berry levelled the game in the final moments with an almost identical finish.
Obi went close to finding a winner in stoppage time, but a draw was United’s fate on the night.
Reece Munro was crucial in the Reds’ defensive unit.
MATCH DETAILS
United: Harrison; Ogunneye, Munro, Fredricson (c), Murray; Kone; T. Fletcher, Moorhouse (J. Fletcher 62); Mantato (Biancheri 62), Obi, Scanlon.
Substitutes not used: Murdock, Kamason, Rowe.
Goals: Mantato 3, Obi 42, 49.
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Monday 07 April 2025 21:14
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