United Beyond Manchester

As Liverpool fell in the Merseyside Derby, Manchester United somewhat righted the ship with a comeback victory over Sheffield United. Heroics from Bruno Fernandes meant that the Reds broke a Premier League winless streak and moved up to 6th in the table.

First Half

Manchester United nearly had a picture-perfect start as Diogo Dalot’s brilliant left-footed strike from distance was matched by a stunning save from Wes Foderingham. After this chance, the Reds continued early dominance and had over 75% of the possession in the first ten minutes.

Manchester United continued to dominate, and Alejandro Garnacho should have scored in the 22nd minute. A great move from the attack got Garnacho in behind and in front of goal but he could not beat Foderingham.

After getting dominated for 35 minutes, Sheffield United took the lead after a howler from Andre Onana. The United goalkeeper attempted an ill-advised pass to Diogo Dalot across his box that was intercepted and finished by Jayden Bogle.

Manchester United stayed on the attack after conceding and earned a leveler through Harry Maguire. Bruno Fernandes played in a great free kick that went through and almost out. Garnacho went and saved the attack and played a cross that Maguire flicked into the far corner to make it two goals in three days.

Manchester United finished the half with 82% possession, 437 passes, 17 total shots, and 7 shots on target. While these stats are a definite improvement, the result was still the same as Erik Ten Hag’s side entered the break level with last place Sheffield United.

Second Half

Ben Brereton Diaz scored a second goal for Sheffield United against the run of play in the 50th minute. The Sheffield attacker was left alone on a cut-back into the box from Ben Osborn and fired the away side into the lead. At the time of the goal, nine Manchester United outfield players were inside the box, yet none were marking Brereton Diaz.

Diogo Dalot had a clear-cut chance as he found himself as the furthest man forward, but the United right-back was not able to get his feet sorted to get a shot away.

In the 59th minute, Harry Maguire was brought down in the box on a corner, and United was awarded a penalty. Manchester United’s “Portuguese Magnifico” continued his fine goal-scoring form as he smashed the penalty into the back of the net to level the score at two.

Bruno Fernandes provided Manchester United a first lead of the day with a breathtaking left-footed shot from distance in the 81st minute. The captain received a pass from Kobbie Mainoo and struck the ball with no hesitation past Wes Foderingham for his second goal of the day.

Four minutes later, Rasmus Hojlund sealed the deal and broke his goal drought with a finish in the 85th minute. Bruno Fernandes played a ball across and Hojlund tapped the ball in to make it 4-2.

U18 star Ethan Wheatley made his first-team debut when he came on for Rasmus Hojlund in stoppage time. A day after scoring twice to lift the U18s to a Premier League Cup title, the young striker was rewarded with Premier League minutes.

After a nervous first 80 minutes, Manchester United found a way to win behind Bruno Fernandes and break a Premier League slump.

Man of the Match

Bruno Fernandes has been magnificent in recent matches, and today was no different. The captain led Erik Ten Hag’s side to a home comeback victory. Bruno Fernandes scored the penalty to level, the screamer to take the lead, and assisted Hojlund’s knockout punch. Today’s match took him to ten league goals and seven league assists this season. Bruno Fernandes is today’s Man of the Match and will probably be United’s Player of the Month.

Player Ratings

Starting XI
Andre Onana: 4 – Had a howler in the first half and did not have many saves to make.
Diogo Dalot: 6 – Attacked well from the back and could have had two goals.
Harry Maguire: 7 – A second straight game with a headed goal and had a few good moments defensively.
Casemiro: 6 – A decent game out of position again for the Brazilian.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka: 5 – Was decent but got caught too far inside on the second Sheffield goal and could not close down Ben Osborn.
Kobbie Mainoo: 7 – Another top-quality performance and got a free assist from the Fernandes strike.
Christian Eriksen (off in the 64th minute): 5 – Was okay in possession but did not offer much.
Bruno Fernandes: 10 – A brilliant performance from Bruno Fernandes and my first 10 rating. He has been carrying this team for weeks now.
Rasmus Hojlund: 6 – Back on the scoresheet.
Antony (off in the 50th minute): 5 – Combined well at times but had no end product.
Alejandro Garnacho: 6 – Was dangerous in the attack and provided a great assist for Maguire. Should have scored, though.

Substitutions
Amad Diallo (on in the 50th minute): 6 – Was lively after coming on.
Scott McTominay (on in the 64th minute): 5 – Provided more energy than Eriksen did.
Sofyan Amrabat – Too late to rate
Ethan Wheatley – Too late to rate, but a well-deserved debut.

Looking Ahead

There is no rest for the weary as Manchester United will play a 3rd game in seven days when they face Burnley on Saturday. United will be looking for a second straight win over a side in the relegation zone when Burnley visits Old Trafford.

Drop your thoughts on today’s match in the comments!