WOE FOR OLE AS UNITED CHOKE IN THE FOG
The clock ticked past four hours without a goal for Manchester United as the mist descended upon Selhurst Park. In truth, Manchester City were already out of sight but the frustration was building once again for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
After goalless games against Real Sociedad and Chelsea, here was another stalemate building against Crystal Palace.
This was a very different contest to the featureless draw against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
here, there was no shortage of incident and an enjoyable game played at a healthy tempo, with Palace playing their part.
But it was perhaps not the ideal preparation for Solskjaer and his team ahead of Sunday’s derby at the etihad Stadium.
They are running out of goals and maybe running out of ideas as Bruno Fernandes continues to struggle for fluency.
United can point to progress and improvement on last season and their long unbeaten run away from home in the Premier League goes on.
It has now stretched to 21 games, but a title challenge has not materialised as it briefly threatened to do.
Dean henderson, making only his third Premier League start for United, was in goal for the visitors and quickly involved as Palace piled on the early pressure.
henderson’s handling was impeccable as he gathered a teasing free-kick from Andros Townsend and pulled a high corner out of the air.
Christian Benteke skied a volley before Solskjaer’s side responded with a flurry of efforts at goal. The closest came from a Nemanja Matic shot that clipped James McCarthy and swerved towards the top corner before Vicente Guaita reached out a hand to save.
From the corner, harry Maguire headed down into a crowd and edinson Cavani flicked over. Then came a glorious opportunity squandered by Marcus Rashford, who pulled his shot an inch or two wide when he ought to have hit the target from ten yards.
Roy hodgson’s men always offered a threat on the break, especially when they were able to get the ball wide to eberechi eze in space.
United’s main creative force Fernandes struggled for any fluency throughout, unable to find his best rhythm as the home side hustled and smothered.
Palace made a positive start to the second half as well, Benteke attempting an acrobatic scissor-kick but finding the route to goal blocked by a cluster of defenders.
Henderson held a crisp strike by Jordan Ayew and Townsend volleyed wide after Luka Milivojevic crashed a free-kick into a defensive wall.
Solskjaer (right) threw on substitutes in search of a late goal. Dan James came on and went close. Mason Greenwood fizzed another long-range effort over.
United pressed forward, forcing corners in the tense finish.
But Palace, who won at Old Trafford on the opening day of the season and have never done the league double over United, hunkered down to defend their point.
There would be no breakthrough. Goalless, goalless Man United. Again.