Rashford injury mars United win
Spaniard is United match-winner after cool finish breaks Wolves resistance
IT IS Juan Mata’s misfortune that his years at Manchester United have coincided with a period of such mediocrity at the club that won its most recent Premier League only six months or so before he joined in January 2014.
The Spaniard may lack some of the physicality commonly found in the league’s best players these days but he remains more than capable of decorating a game. Here, it was his cute second-half goal that saw off Wolves in this third-round replay at Old Trafford.
This was not a great game. It was somewhat better than the scoreless draw at Molineux that brought us here but it was no classic all the same. Maybe the many thousands who left seats empty in the stadium, had read something in their tea leaves.
Mata’s goal was worth watching, though. Released by Anthony Martial midway through the secUnited ond half, Mata raced away from a Wolves defence that had shown a propensity for being caught square all night.
Mata is 31 now and was never the quickest in the first place. It was never his game. But here it was composure rather than speed that the former Chelsea player needed and he has rarely been short of that. His dinked finished over the previously unbeatable Wolves goalkeeper John Ruddy was terrific and United were through to the next round of a competition that could yet feasibly save their mediocre season.
The only concern for United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was the sight of Marcus Rashford leaving the field injured only 16 minutes after coming on as a substitute in the second half. face Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday and will need Rashford in their team.
Wolves had come to win and fielded a strong side in their efforts to do so. They were competitive and things did not go their way in key moments during a first half that saw them dangerous on occasion.
But too often the final ball was rued by manager Nuno Espirito Santo and in the second period it was hard to recall them making a clear chance.
But opportunity had definitely been there for them. United’s defending had not been as sound as it should have been and they were also prone to giving the ball away in midfield. Facing a team as slick and progressive as Wolves, that was never likely to end well.
United had actually been first to threaten. Throughout the opening half, Wolves had not coped well with United’s balls over the top and Daniel James — one of the quickest players on the field — had galloped on to the first one from Mata in the third minute only for Ruddy to advance and bat the ball away with his palm.
Within five minutes, Wolves should have been ahead. Adama Traore made progress far too easily down the Wolves left and when he crossed low, Raul Jimenez sold three United players a dummy to leave himself with the whole of the goal to aim at from virtually the penalty spot. Unfortunately for him, he chose the bit with United goalkeeper Sergio Romero standing in it and his shot was saved with surprising ease.
If that served as a warning for United, it was not heeded. Two minutes later, Fred slammed the ball against his own team-mate Nemanja Matic in centre field and when Jimenez won a tussle with Harry Maguire, Pedro Neto was able to collect possession and score. It seemed a fair goal and from a United point of view a dismal one. But a VAR review showed the ball bouncing up off
United’s Maguire to strike Jimenez on the arm and the goal was rightly disallowed.
Already the memories of a turgid first game were no more. This was a lively contest played by two teams who seemed to see the value of continuing in the competition.
James may have benefited from another deep pass just before the break only to be denied by Ruddy once again. By then Wolves had come devilishly close, Matt Doherty planting a header against the post. The assistant’s flag went up but it was not clear whether that was against Doherty or the clearly offside Jimenez, who sought to follow up.
After half-time the intensity dropped a little. James could have scored in the 52nd minute but after collecting a pass from Brandon Williams, he shot low across goal and wide by half a foot.
United started to enjoy more of the ball, just without a threat, while Wolves played on the counter. One break down the right by
Neto looked promising but the recovery run and tackle by young left-back Williams was terrific.
Not long after that, United were ahead. It was a goal that came rather out of nothing but it was finished excellently by Mata nonetheless to set up a fourth-round tie at either Watford or Tranmere on Sunday week.
MANCHESTER UNITED (4-2-3-1): Romero 7; Wan-Bissaka 6, Maguire 6, Lindelof 6, Williams 7; Matic 6, Fred 7; James 7.5 (Rashford 6, 63min; Lingard 79), Mata 7, Greenwood 6 (Pereira 6, 63); Martial 7. Subs not used: Grant, Jones, Dalot, Chong. Scorer: Mata 67. Booked: Fred, Maguire. Manager: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer 7. WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS (3-4-3): RUDDY 8; Saiss 6, Coady 6, Dendoncker 6; Doherty 6, Moutinho 6, Neves 7, Jonny 6 (Vinagre 6, 75); Traore 7 (Buur 88), Jimenez 7, Neto 6 (Gibbs-White 6, 71). Subs not used: Patricio, Bennett, Kilman, Ashley-Seal. Booked: Neto, Dendoncker. Manager: Nuno Espirito Santo 6. Referee: Kevin Friend 6. Attendance: 67,025.