Pogba among goals again in United win
MANCHESTER: Midfielder Paul Pogba scored twice — for the second time since Jose Mourinho’s departure from the club — as Manchester United beat Bournemouth 41 at Old Trafford to make it three wins in a row for caretaker boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer yesterday.
French World Cup winner Pogba, relishing his football since the change of management, took just five minutes to strike, sliding the ball in at the back post after a wonderful piece of dribbling and a precise low cross from Marcus Rashford.
Pogba then burst into the box to head home an Ander Herrera cross from deep to make it 20.
There was real class about United’s third, in the 45th minute, as Anthony Martial delivered a low cross with the outside of his boot and Rashford guided it home off the outside of his outstretched foot.
Bournemouth pulled a goal back in stoppagetime at the end of the first half when David Brooks skipped around the United defence and placed a cross on the head of Nathan Ake, who nodded past David De Gea.
Romelu Lukaku made it 41, two minutes after coming on as a 70th minute substitute, latching on to a Pogba through ball and hooking the ball past the advancing Asmir Begovic.
The relaxed and positive mood was slightly undone by a wild lunge in the 79th minute from United defender Eric Bailly on Ryan Fraser, and the Ivorian was rightly shown a straight red card.
Manchester City bounced back from two consecutive defeats to beat Southampton 31 and cut the gap on Premier League leader Liverpool to seven points before the top two meet on Friday.
Pep Guardiola’s champions needed to regain their footing after stumbling against Crystal Palace and Leicester, and did so with strikes from David Silva, Sergio Aguero and James WardProwse’s own goal at St Mary’s.
Charlie Austin should have put Southampton ahead, but miscontrolled the ball after being played in on goal.
City immediately took advantage and Bernardo Silva teed up David Silva to slot home unmarked in the 10th minute.
Alex McCarthy made a good save to keep out Aguero from pointblank range after good work by Sterling and City was made to pay for its profligacy when PierreEmile Hojbjerg slammed home after robbing Oleksandr Zinchenko.
City regained the lead when Sterling’s cutback deflected against WardProwse and in after 45 minutes and Aguero headed home another from Zinchenko’s cross in the third minute of firsthalf stoppage time.
McCarthy made good saves to deny Sterling and Mahrez after the break, while Aguero hit the crossbar and Hojbjerg was sent off for a rash tackle on Fernandinho.
Defeat left Southampton 17th in the table on 15 points, the same as 18th placed Burnley, which beat West Ham United 20 earlier yesterday.
Goals from All White Chris Wood and teenager Dwight McNeil gave struggling Burnley a muchneeded 20 win over West Ham United at Turf Moor, ending a run of three straight defeats.