Manchester United secured the the most spectacular of the 2-1 victories against Manchester City on Sunday.
Having gone behind to Josko Gvardiol’s header in the first half, United looked set to taste defeat before City collapsed in spectacular fashion once again. Bruno Fernandes scored from the spot with five minutes remaining, moments before Amad Diallo slotted home a winner to hand Pep Guardiola’s side an eighth defeat in their last 11 games.
How the game developed
Man City set out to dominate possession early on, but United pressed well and frustrated their hosts, although their cause was hampered on 14 minutes when Mason Mount fell to the turf and finally injured himself limping.
It took 21 minutes for the first shot to arrive. Phil Foden collected the ball on the edge of the penalty area and volleyed wide of Andre Onana’s post. The Englishman saw another effort deflected shortly after and Rubén Dias headed home from the back corner.
Amad’s blushes were spared when the view from the offside flag saw everyone quickly move on from the fact that he had just dragged Ederson wide in what was unofficially the first chance from United
With ten minutes to go, City took the lead. A deflected cross reached the box and was met perfectly by Gvardiol, who headed his header into the back of the net to give City the lead at the break.
There was more life for United in the second half and Ederson finally got involved in proceedings when he pulled off a low save to deny Amad, whose effort was deflected wide and left United still searching for their first shot at the goal
Fernandes should have equalized in the 17th minute when Hojlund was played in behind, but the captain’s effort was deflected onto the post.
Kobbie Mainoo headed home as United’s search for an equalizer entered the final ten minutes, but with five minutes remaining he was rewarded with a penalty when a poor back pass from Matheus Nunes sent Amad into the goal His desperate breakaway eventually saw Nunes collapse against the United winger and concede a penalty. Fernandes stepped up, who made no mistake.
City’s slump was leveled almost immediately afterwards when Amad managed to loop the ball around a defenseless Ederson and send a volley skittering over the line into the dying embers to seal an impressive three points.
The biggest talking point of the afternoon came before the game had even started with the revelation that Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho had been left out of the matchday squad.
Amorim confirmed before the start that his decision had been made based on “everything” rather than any fear of injury. The new boss may not be familiar with his new surroundings, but he will have been under no illusions about what response this choice would generate.
It remains to be seen how this will affect things behind the scenes, but on the pitch, it cannot be denied united they were short in attack for the most part, with Antony the only wide forward on the bench. Amorim hopes that leaving out Rashford and Garnacho will bring about a significant long-term change, one way or another.
City returned to the famous 3-2-4-1 they introduced last season in search of some defensive solidarity. For about 85 minutes, the results were largely positive.
Unfortunately, as seems to be the case with City these days, a lapse in concentration proved catastrophic. Nunes, playing as an auxiliary left-back, not only made the poor back pass that led to the equaliser, but also somehow managed to concede the penalty.
With the pressure on, City again let things get worse as Amad chased down a lost cause and somehow managed to round Ederson and tap home. Guardiola just can’t catch a break.
There was definitely some luck with City’s opener – a Kevin De Bruyne cross took a clear deflection off Amad – but United simply cannot escape the fact that they were once again beaten by a routine corner .
The deflection may have missed Diogo Dalot and Rasmus Hojlund, neither of whom were in the right place when the ball came in, but at least one of them should have been able to offer some sort of challenge to Gvardiol, who rose indisputably and steered his head home with ease.
Amorim tried to implement some form of set piece defense as Hojlund spent most of his time trying to slow dance with Erling Haaland, but there is clearly more work to do.
United were far from their best here, but it could be seen something in them, especially after Amorim had the opportunity to enter his players at the break.
The Red Devils looked to fight back in the second half and while they needed a bit of luck to get back into the game, it’s hard to argue that they didn’t deserve it. United never gave up and ran until the final whistle, and their equalizer was deserved.
As City floundered, United smelled blood and then charged forward for a winner, and it was Amad who rewarded Amorim’s faith again with one of the most important goals of the season.
Amorim’s arrival has had an excellent impact on Mason Mount, who appear to have benefited from the new boss’s all-action approach to proceedings. Unfortunately, his momentum has once again been halted by injury.
Without Rashford for Garnacho in the squad, it was Bruno Fernandes who was pushed further up the team sheet, with Kobbie Mainoo entering the fray and partnering Manuel Ugarte in the deeper role.
This will only increase the focus on Rashford and Garnacho’s future with this team, with United lacking attacking areas if Mount faces an extended spell on the sidelines.
