De Gea masterclass gives Solskjaer joy of six
● United edge Wembley thriller while Everton win to ease pressure on Silva
David De Gea produced one of the finest goalkeeping displays in many a year as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer overcame Mauricio Pochettino’s Tottenham to become the first manager in Manchester United’s history to win their first six matches in charge.
Yesterday’s eagerly-anticipatedpremierleagueencounter pitted the bookmakers’ favourites to permanently replace Jose Mourinho against one another as a packed Wembley witnessed a clash that lived up to the billing.
Marcus Rashford’s splendid strike from an equally impressive Paul Pogba pass sealed United’s 1-0 win, but De Gea will take the headlines after an incredible display that left Pochettino, the frontrunner to take over at Old Trafford this summer, in disbelief.
If it was not his hands, the Spaniard got there with his feet to stop the Spurs onslaught in a remarkable second half.
De Gea had made 11 saves by the time the full-time whistle went in a captivating match at Wembley, with the result leaving Spurs nine points behind league leaders Liverpool while United are now level on points with fifth-placed Arsenal.
There were impressive attacking flashes from United and impressive resolve in front of the watching Sir Alex
Ferguson, who saw the goalkeeper he brought in from Atletico Madrid in 2011 take the plaudits with a breathtaking performance.
Meanwhile, Kurt Zouma’s first Everton goal and a late
strike from Dominic Calvertlewin eased some of the scrutiny on manager Marco Silva but Bournemouth’s miserable run continued after a 2-0 defeat at Goodison Park.
The on-loan Chelsea defend-
er’s 61st-minute header was followed by substitute Calvert-lewin sidefooting home in the sixth minute of additional time to secure only the Toffees’ second Premier League win in nine matches, and their first home clean sheet since 24 November.
Bournemouth’s misery continued as their slump was extended to nine defeats in their last 12 league matches.
At last week’s Annual General Meeting Everton majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri, while backing Silva, assessed the season as “not good enough”.
Victory at least ensured they are three points better off than at the same stage a year ago when they were on their third manager of the campaign in Sam Allardyce.
Performances will have to improve, significantly, though to prevent Moshiri wondering just where his £250 million investment is going.
Bournemouth, meanwhile, just need to find a way of stopping the rot, although their good start means they are still nine points above the bottom three.