Young Reds earn breathing space in bid to avoid drop
UNITED Under-23s secured a much-needed 3-1 win over Sunderland on Monday night. Here are five key issues from the game...
IT’S CBJ TIME...AGAIN THIS time last year, Cameron BorthwickJackson had already made 13 first-team appearances for United.
But a lot has changed since then and the 20-year-old is in limbo amid his ongoing struggles on loan at Wolves. The defender has not played for the Championship strugglers since November, and the Reds passed up the opportunity to recall him in January. Instead, for the second game running, the defender has filled in for United’s reserves on a temporary basis to maintain his fitness.
STRIKERS ARE OVERRATED DESPITE a decent performance in the Premier League International Cup defeat to Porto last week, Joshua Bohui was dropped.
Instead, United continued to rely on midfielder Josh Harrop as their main goal threat and it says it all that the 21-year-old and full-back Demi Mitchell lead the club’s goalscoring charts. However flawed it may seem to not have a recognised striker on the pitch, United’s forward line stepped up against Sunderland. For just the fourth time this season, the Reds scored at least two goals in a game thanks to Mitchell, Scott McTominay and Devonte Redmond.
MEN AGAINST BOYS ASIDE from Eric Bailly’s botched comeback in January, Jose Mourinho appears to have paid little attention to the reserves.
David Moyes, on the other hand, has used the platform to keep his fringe players sharp and Jan Kirchhoff, Lynden Gooch and Donald Love all played for Sunderland. A youthful United side may have lacked the Premier League experience of their counterparts, but they more than held their own.
LOVE IS A BURNIN’ THING IT will not have escaped Donald Love’s pre-match thoughts that he made his United debut when these clubs’ senior sides met last season. But it was a reunion to forget for the Scot - who is now at Sunderland – after he gave away a penalty midway through the firsthalf after getting in a tangle with Harrop.
WELCOME BREATHING SPACE UNITED moved up to seventh place in the Premier League Division 2 table with the win. After being humbled by relegation rivals Reading at Leigh last time out in the league, the Reds raced out of the blocks and showed some fight. United now have their destiny in their own hands for the final four games of the season.