OLE THROUGH DESPITE ROME DEFEAT
MANCHESTER United are in the Europa League final, but what a way to get to Gdansk. Already four goals in front from the first leg at Old Trafford and one ahead on the night at the Stadio Olimpico, surely they could not mess this up.
Yet for a few shaky, shocking minutes in the second half, they fell behind to Roma and were in danger of losing their grip on the tie altogether had it not been for the excellence of David de Gea.
The Spaniard may have lost his No 1 spot to Dean Henderson but he reminded us last night just what a gifted goalkeeper he is. It would be a travesty if he didn’t get the nod from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer against Villarreal on May 26.
Solskjaer is through to a final at last after four semi-final defeats as United manager and he must hope the club’s last trophy — the Europa League under Jose Mourinho after beating Ajax in the 2017 final — will also be their next.
Edinson Cavani and Bruno Fernandes were the other standout players for a team who fortunately have individual brilliance to make up for collective shortcomings.
Fernandes had a hand in both goals for Cavani, who now has seven in his last six games and will be disappointed he didn’t score more on a crazy night in Rome that finished with an aggregate score of 8-5.
‘A strange game of football,’ was the verdict from Solskjaer, whose captain Harry Maguire likened it to a game of basketball.
The manager added: ‘ It was always going to be an open game but it could have been 6-6. We kept giving them the ball and losing it in difficult positions.
‘Luckily we have one of the best goalkeepers in the world and a No 9 who wants to score goals.’
It was just as well United had such a commanding lead from the first leg because the postponement of Sunday’s game against Liverpool amid violent protests at Old Trafford meant this game was their first of four in eight days.
‘It’s unheard of,’ said Solskjaer. ‘It’s made by people who have never played football at this level.’
Meanwhile, all the talk in Rome this week had been about Mourinho’s imminent arrival as the replacement for coach Paulo Fonseca.
But this club famously overturned a three-goal deficit against Barcelona at the Stadio Olimpico in 2018 and they gave it a good go last night.
De Gea made three excellent saves in the first half from Gianluca Mancini, former United man Henrikh Mkhitaryan and the lively Lorenzo Pellegrini, as well as cutting out Rick Karsdorp’s cross destined for Edin Dzeko.
United made inroads at the other end, however, and when Cavani scored before half-time he could easily have been celebrating a hat-trick. The Uruguayan was sent through by Fred’s pass over the top in the 20th minute but clipped the bar with a lob that ended up on the roof of the net. When Fernandes played him through again with an exquisite pass off the outside of his boot six minutes later, Cavani went for power and saw his shot beaten away by Antonio Mirante. It didn’t seem to alter his thinking when he got a third opportunity.
Fernandes was again at the heart of the move, flicking Luke Shaw’s pass brilliantly into the path of Fred. The Brazilian guided it through for Cavani, who once again chose power over placement and Mirante couldn’t keep it out.
Solskjaer felt comfortable enough to replace both full backs at half-time but that only encouraged Roma to go for broke. It paid off with two goals in the space of four minutes — and it could have been even worse for United.
Dzeko headed in from close range in the 57th minute after Mkhitaryan got down the left and crossed for Pedro, whose volley into the turf bounced up nicely for the ex-Manchester City striker.
Then Pellegrini picked Fred’s pocket as he tried to be too clever on the edge of his own box and Bryan Cristante beat De Gea with an excellent shot.
The United keeper pulled off a double save from Dzeko and Pedro, but knew little about another from Mkhitaryan as United wobbled.
Cavani settled their nerves with a second goal which again had Fernandes’ fingerprints all over it. The Portuguese spotted his teammate’s run into the box and picked him out with a superb cross that invited the headed finish.
But Roma deserved their win and young substitute Nicola Zalewski clinched it from close range late on. So a European campaign that began for United in the Champions League group stage in Paris last October will end in Gdansk later this month.
Solskjaer, whose last trophy was the Norwegian Cup with Molde in 2013, is one step away now.