Ole’s kids hint at a brighter future
Martial and Rashford strike as United climb into the Euro positions
MANCHESTER UNITED rang out the old and rang in the new at Turf Moor last night. The year is going and they will be happy to let it to go and to embrace another. They will bid it farewell with little regret but at least their final game of 2019 brought more hints of renewal and progress and the happy spectre of a Champions League place.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side deserved their win here and it will have seemed particularly pleasing to the manager that this hardfought victory, which took them into fifth place in the table, one point away from the top four, was achieved with some fine performances from their young players in this hostile environment atop the moor.
On a bitter night when Paul Pogba was absent again, Brandon Williams, Daniel James, Andreas Pereira and Marcus Rashford stood up and made the difference with the fluid confidence of youth and class. Fred, so often maligned, may not fit the same age profile but he was superb as the anchor in midfield, too.
Anthony Martial, also back in form, grabbed the opener on the stroke of the interval and United spent much of the rest of the match protecting their lead and riding as best they could a series of increasingly robust challenges from Burnley.
The atmosphere was fretful at Turf Moor. They are beginning to slip a little too close to the relegation zone.
For United, it was a good end to a month that had begun with back-toback victories over Tottenham and Manchester City. Paired with Boxing Day’s emphatic win over Newcastle United, this triumph, sealed late on with a breakaway goal from Rashford, will provide muchneeded optimism as 2020 approaches.
Burnley had made the first meaningful incursion into opposition territory after kick-off when Charlie Taylor burst down the left, nutmegged Ashley Young and floated a clever ball to the back post where Chris Wood was lurking. Wood rose to head the ball in but Williams flicked it out of his reach in the nick of time.
When Fred was fouled by James Tarkowski deep in the Burnley half a few minutes later, Rashford lined up the free-kick even though he was almost 30 yards out. He drove it goalwards and even though Nick Pope seemed to have it covered, the ball swerved wildly at the end of its trajectory and the goalkeeper had to dive to his left to push it clear.
It has been a while since a Wales winger called James thrilled the crowds at Turf Moor and Leighton James exists here now only in fond memories and in a poster behind one of the stands, but the noisy United contingent behind one goal sung the name of Daniel James as his pace and confidence started to cause the home defence problems.
Taylor was fortunate not to be booked when he chopped James down as he was about to surge into the area. A couple of minutes later, Rashford smashed a fierce, low shot against the base of a post after a clever lay-back from James. United turned the screw, Burnley did their best to disrupt their rhythm with a series of fouls and Phil Bardsley was booked for a clumsy challenge.
James was at the centre of things again when United nearly took the lead after half an hour.
A cross from Williams drifted over Ben Mee’s head and James took it down on the edge of the sixyard box. He drilled a shot across goal and it fell to Martial, who took a touch to control it and then poked it goalwards where it was hacked off the line by Bardsley.
Williams was having a fine game and he curled in another inviting cross a couple of minutes later that flew across the face of goal and was begging for a finishing touch. Pope’s knee seemed to buckle under him as he readied himself to intercept it and he was given extensive treatment. To the delight of the United fans, Joe Hart began warming up on the touchline. ‘City reject,’ they yelled at him.
United got the goal they deserved on the stroke of half-time. It came from an error. Taylor dallied on the ball on the left flank and Pereira stole it from him.
Pereira played a superb ball inside a defender into the path of Martial, who advanced on Pope and struck a bobbling shot past the goalkeeper. On the Burnley bench, Sean Dyche could barely contain his fury.
Jeff Hendrick incurred the wrath of an increasingly fractious home support early in the second half when he blazed a speculative shot high and wide when Bardsley was overlapping in space on the right. A few minutes later, poor Hendrick hit another shot 20 rows back into
the stand. Turf Moor let out a collective groan. A minute later, Dyche put Hendrick out of his misery and substituted him.
But Burnley were beginning to show some signs of life. Inspired by Dwight McNeil, they started to discomfort United at the back and McNeil flashed a rare shot across the face of goal.
They were still vulnerable to United’s counter-attacks, though, and Mee was lucky to escape a red card for a mistimed, high challenge on James. He was shown a yellow instead.
De Gea had had little to do but when United failed to clear a corner midway through the second half, Bardsley latched on to the loose ball and drove it towards the corner of the goal. De Gea launched himself to his right and pushed the ball to safety with his palm.
As the clock ran down, McNeil curled a free-kick just too high.
Burnley pressed furiously for an equaliser in injury time but Rashford sealed their fate with his late breakaway goal.